IRIA News

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Arab and Islamic leaders gathered in Doha for an emergency summit to respond to Israel’s recent air strike in the Qatari capital. The strike, which targeted Hamas leaders and their families on September 9, killed six people and provoked outrage across the region.

The summit was convened by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who condemned the Israeli attack as “blatant, treacherous, and cowardly”. Participants voiced solidarity with Qatar but did not announce concrete military or economic action against Israel.

Sheikh Tamim said in his opening address: “My country’s capital was subjected to a treacherous attack targeting a residence housing the families of Hamas leaders and their negotiating delegation.”

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Al Thani argued that the attack demonstrated Israel’s lack of interest in peace and was intended to “thwart negotiations” aimed at ending the war in Gaza, which has already killed more than 64,800 Palestinians.

GCC Defense Pact

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, pledged to activate a joint defense mechanism. Majed Mohammed Al-Ansari, spokesman for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed that consultations among GCC military bodies were underway to strengthen Gulf deterrence.

“The joint statement obviously called for a meeting of the high command to be held here in Doha to discuss further steps to ensure that the safety and the joint security of the GCC countries are addressed,” Al-Ansari said. “The GCC stands in one line.”

While no details were released on the form the defense mechanism would take, officials emphasized that the pact is designed on the principle that an attack on one member state is an attack on all.

Israel’s Expansionist Policy

Sheikh Tamim accused Israel of pursuing an “expansionist vision” across the Middle East, citing repeated bombings of Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, and its refusal to withdraw forces from southern Lebanon. He warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to transform the region into “an Israeli sphere of influence,” calling it “a dangerous illusion.”

He called for “concrete steps to address the state of madness of power, arrogance, and bloodthirstiness obsession that has befallen the government of Israel.”

Despite strong language, no immediate sanctions or diplomatic breaks with Israel were announced. Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, GCC secretary-general, urged the United States to restrain its ally. “We expect our strategic partners in the US to use their influence on Israel for it to stop this behavior – we really do expect that,” Albudaiwi said.

Affirmations of HH @TamimBinHamad at the Emergency Arab-Islamic Summit reflect our stance in defending our sovereignty in the face of Israeli aggression & the delusions of its extremist government, & reveal attempts to derail negotiations by imposing a regional fait accompli. pic.twitter.com/lJ2XWSy2zi

— محمد بن عبدالرحمن (@MBA_AlThani_) September 15, 2025

The final communique, issued jointly by the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) members, condemned Israel’s “cowardly and illegal attack on the State of Qatar” and expressed “absolute solidarity with Qatar.” The statement supported Doha’s role as a mediator alongside Egypt and the United States, while rejecting Israeli threats to strike Qatar again.

Al-Ansari said Qatar would pursue accountability through international law. “We will hold Israel accountable in the international community, and our tool in doing that is our belief in international law and international organisations,” he said.

Qatar has already raised the issue at the UN Security Council and coordinated with regional partners through the Arab League, OIC, and GCC.

Calls for Stronger Action

Several leaders went beyond the summit’s communique, urging tougher responses. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed economic pressure, recalling past cases where such measures had an impact. He also called for international legal action against Israeli officials.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi described the strike as “a grave violation of international law and a dangerous precedent.” He warned that peace agreements could be undermined.

Pakistan urged the suspension of Israel’s UN membership and called for a joint Arab-Islamic task force. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said it should “adopt effective measures to ward off Israeli expansionist designs.”

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim dismissed mere condemnations, saying: “Condemnations will not stop the missiles, declarations will not free Palestine.” He pressed for sanctions and suspension of diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also urged Muslim nations to cut relations with Israel, accusing it of repeatedly violating the sovereignty of Arab and Muslim states under a false pretext of self-defense.

US Position

While the summit unfolded, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Israel to meet Prime Minister Netanyahu. Rubio said Hamas “needs to cease to exist as an armed element that can threaten the peace and security” of the Middle East.

President Donald Trump, speaking earlier, said: “Qatar has been a very great ally. Israel and everybody else, we have to be careful. When we attack people, we have to be careful.” He assured that Israel would not launch another strike on Qatar.

Al-Ansari said Qatar was engaging closely with the Trump administration. He noted that Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani had held “excellent” meetings in New York with U.S. officials, and further consultations were planned.

The UN Security Council condemned the strike, stressing the importance of de-escalation and expressing solidarity with Qatar.

Israel defended its action as President Isaac Herzog said the operation aimed to “remove some of the people if they are not willing to get a deal” to end the war. Hamas confirmed its negotiating team survived, though five members were killed, including the son of chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya. A Qatari security officer also died.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on September 16 that the United States and Qatar are finalizing an enhanced defense cooperation agreement. Rubio said, “We have a close partnership with the Qataris. In fact, we have an enhanced defense cooperation agreement, which we’ve been working on, we’re on the verge of finalizing.”

Although Israel has questioned Qatar’s role as a mediator and vowed to continue targeting Hamas leadership in Doha, the U.S. Secretary Rubio called for Qatar to continue its role as a mediator between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza war, saying there was “a very short window of time in which a deal could happen.” He said, “If any country in the world can help mediate it, Qatar is the one. They’re the ones that can do it.”

Qatar’s Role in Mediation

Since 2012, Qatar has hosted the Hamas political bureau and has played a central role in mediating ceasefire efforts. It also maintains close ties with Washington, hosting a major U.S. airbase outside Doha.

The summit praised Qatar’s mediation efforts, alongside Egypt and the U.S., and called for renewed international focus on the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant UN resolutions. Leaders stressed that a just and lasting peace cannot be achieved by sidelining the Palestinian issue.

The summit’s final declaration of the summit warned that Israeli attempts to impose a “new reality” in the region posed a “direct threat to regional and international security.” It called for sanctions, legal measures, and suspension of weapons transfers to Israel, while urging OIC members to consider Israel’s UN membership status.

The statement also called on states party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court to enforce existing arrest warrants against individuals accused of crimes against Palestinians.

The summit concluded with a warning against annexation of Palestinian territories, describing it as a “blatant violation of international law and UN resolutions” and urging collective action to prevent “catastrophic consequences.”