Leaders and senior officials from Arab and Islamic states met in Qatar on Monday for an emergency summit called in response to Israel’s airstrike last week that killed Hamas officials in Doha.
A draft resolution seen by Reuters condemns what it calls Israel’s “hostile acts including genocide, ethnic cleansing [and] starvation,” warning the campaign threatens “prospects of peace and coexistence.” Israel has strongly denied such allegations.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani opened the meeting by urging the international community to stop applying “double standards” and to hold Israel accountable. Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said global “silence and inaction” had emboldened Israeli forces.
Analysts say the summit is unlikely to produce practical measures, noting that a coordinated military response is off the table. The gathering is expected to conclude with a joint statement expressing political solidarity.
Among the participants was Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who traveled to Doha with Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref and other senior officials. Before departing Tehran, Pezeshkian said Iran “stands with Qatar.” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was also expected to attend.
The summit follows an Israeli strike in Doha that killed five Hamas members and a Qatari security officer. Despite U.S. concerns, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the attack and said ties with Qatar remain “solid and stable.” He spoke after meeting U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said Washington sought to “manage the consequences” of the strike without harming its relationship with Israel.
Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes on Gaza continued Monday. Medical officials told Al Jazeera that at least 25 Palestinians were killed since dawn, including 16 in Gaza City. A strike on a camp for displaced people in western Gaza killed seven, among them three children.
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency said 10 of its facilities — including seven schools and two clinics — had been hit in the past four days.
