Qatar pulls out of Gaza mediation, blaming both sides for lack of good faith

(DOHA/Washington/Jerusalem) The Qatari foreign Ministry announced that it has suspended its role in mediating a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza until Hamas and Israel show "seriousness" in the negotiations.

Since a week-long ceasefire was agreed in November 2023, talks mediated jointly by Cairo and Washington have been repeatedly blocked, with both sides blaming each other for the impasse.

In a statement on Saturday, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed al-Ansari said: "Ten days ago, during its last attempt to reach an agreement, Qatar informed the parties that if an agreement was not reached in this round of negotiations, Qatar would suspend its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel... Qatar will resume these efforts when the parties demonstrate their will and seriousness."

Gaza ceasefire talks are deadlocked and the Hamas political office in Doha is "no longer functional," a diplomatic source said. But a senior Hamas official in Doha said: "We have not received any notice to leave Qatar."

Both Qatari and American officials have said that as long as Hamas's presence provides an effective channel of communication, it can remain in Doha.

The main difference between the two sides is Hamas's insistence on a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, which Israel rejects. Israeli Army chief Khalevi recently said that "we will not stop or slow down," and promised to "bring back the hostages and ensure the safety of Israeli communities near the Gaza border."

The standoff has heightened tensions in the country, with Israelis holding weekly protests demanding the government secure the hostages' release. Protesters accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being unwilling to reach an agreement.

At the same time, Israel intensified its air strikes on the Lebanese border. The Lebanese government said Saturday that air strikes in the past day had killed at least 40 people, including several children, and that Israeli troops had not issued evacuation orders before the attack. The Israeli military said it targeted Hezbollah infrastructure in Tyre and Baalbek, including fighters, combat apartments and weapons depots.

A British war monitoring group said Israel also carried out airstrikes in northern and northwestern Syria late Friday, killing at least five people, including four pro-Iranian fighters. Although the Israeli government rarely comments on the attacks, it has repeatedly said it will not allow Iran to expand its influence in Syria.

In the Gaza Strip, more than 30 people were killed Sunday in an Israeli air strike on a building in the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza.

The United States and Britain have launched airstrikes on advanced weapons depots of the Houthi armed forces in Yemen

According to the Pentagon, US warplanes carried out multiple strikes on advanced weapons storage facilities of the Houthi armed forces in Yemen on Saturday night. These facilities are known to contain a variety of weapons used to attack military and civilian ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

According to the Iranian-backed Houthi Masira TV, the three strikes carried out by US and British warplanes were against targets in the southern region of the capital Sanaa. Residents said about nine attacks targeted Sana 'a, its suburbs and Amran province.

Since January, the United States and the United Kingdom have repeatedly struck Houthi targets in Yemen in response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. In more than 100 attacks by the Houthis over nearly a year, four crew members have been killed and two cargo ships sunk, while one cargo ship and its crew remain in custody since being hijacked in November.