Arab and Islamic summit in Doha piles pressure on Israel over Gaza war

Leaders of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation convened in Doha on Monday for an emergency summit called by Qatar, as international pressure mounts on Israel to halt the war in Gaza and address the worsening humanitarian crisis.

The meeting followed an Israeli air strike in the Qatari capital last week that killed six people. Hamas said its senior officials survived the attack, which drew widespread condemnation — including a rare rebuke from US President Donald Trump.

Qatar, a central mediator in ceasefire efforts alongside Egypt and the United States, said the strike targeted Hamas leaders while they were discussing a new American proposal.

Opening the summit, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani accused Israel of undermining peace efforts: “Whoever works diligently and systematically to assassinate the party with whom he is negotiating, intends to thwart the negotiations. Negotiations, for them, are merely part of the war.”

The emir also warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “dreams of turning the Arab region into an Israeli sphere of influence, and this is a dangerous illusion.”

A draft of the summit’s final statement warned that Israel’s “brutal” actions threaten the progress made toward normalization, including the Abraham Accords signed with the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco in 2020.

High-level attendance

The summit drew nearly 60 member states, with notable figures including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a preparatory meeting that the international community must “end double standards” and hold Israel accountable for its actions.

The draft statement also calls for collective security and closer coordination to confront shared regional challenges.

Parallel diplomacy

As the summit opened, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in Israel reaffirming Washington’s strong support. He is expected to travel to Qatar on Tuesday, a US official confirmed.

Meanwhile, the UN Human Rights Council announced it would hold an urgent debate Tuesday on Israel’s strike in Doha. Saudi state media also reported that the Gulf Cooperation Council would convene an extraordinary session in the Qatari capital.

Aziz Algashian, a Saudi-based analyst, said expectations are high: “We’ve exhausted all forms of rhetoric. Now it’s just going to have to be actions — and we’ll see what those actions will be.”