Gaza, the expert: Qatar could withdraw from mediation between Israel and Hamas to maintain ties with the USA
Qatar could decide to withdraw from its role as mediator in the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas to “maintain a firm and iron link with the United States” and to “clean its image” from the accusation of double standards. These are the main reasons that could lead Doha to withdraw from mediation on the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, according to what was declared in Nova Agency by Giuseppe Dentice, analyst at the Center for International Studies (CeSI). As regards the relationship with the USA, for Qatar they “still represent an important element of recognisability and political legitimacy within the Middle Eastern chessboard”.
Furthermore, Dentice explained that «Qatar could have interests in expanding the diplomatic and pressure radius towards Hamas, also so as not to have to suffer a sort of reputational attack by the West which accuses Doha of double standards: that is, of moving in a context of mediation and search for peace, and at the same time supporting a group that is guilty of crimes and gave rise to the latest war born on 7 October”, the day of the Hamas attack on Israel. Among other reasons, «if the mediation carried out with Egypt on Gaza actually fails to find a point of novelty, it is possible in this sense to look for a novel factor, a partner or an actor who can guarantee some change of step. That’s why in the last few days Türkiye’s position is back in vogue», said Dentice. Furthermore, according to the analyst, it is more likely that the political office of Hamas will be moved from Qatar to Turkey, which “for years has been trying to play a role in the Israeli-Palestinian question”, rather than to Oman, whose “priorities and primary interests in Middle Eastern dynamics are different”.
Finally, Dentice concluded that, after Iran’s attack on Israel carried out between 13 and 14 April, «there were various actions by different regional actors, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, putting pressure on both actors to prevent the situation from escalating into something more worrying” at a regional level.
