Qatar condemns Israeli statements on Palestinian displacement, calling them an “extension” of Israel’s ongoing violations of Palestinian rights.
Qatar has strongly condemned recent remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the displacement of Palestinians, denouncing them as further proof of Israel’s disregard for Palestinian rights and international law.
In a statement on Friday, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) described the comments as “an extension of the occupation’s approach to violating the rights of the brotherly Palestinian people, its contempt for international laws and agreements, and its poisonous efforts to block opportunities for peace, especially the two-state solution”.
Israel has been continuously escalating its genocidal operations in the Gaza Strip, which is reeling under starvation caused by Israel’s blocking of the entry of aid into the Strip despite the efforts by the mediators—Qatar, Egypt and the United States—to reach a ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel.
On August 18, Hamas accepted a proposal presented by the mediators which included a 60-day pause in the war in the Gaza Strip but Israel has delayed response to the proposal.
In an interview with the Israeli Telegram channel Abu Ali Express, Netanyahu asserted that there were “different plans for how to rebuild Gaza” and claimed that half of the population wants to leave Gaza, insisting that this was “not a mass expulsion”.
“I can open Rafah for them, but it will be closed immediately by Egypt,” he said.
Qatar’s MoFA, in the statement, said such rhetoric exposes the broader policy of dispossession pursued by Israel and warned of the consequences for regional stability.
Qatar reiterated that the policy of collective punishment pursued by Israel against Palestinians, particularly through its military actions in Gaza, represents a continuation of the occupation’s crimes.
“The policy of collective punishment practised by the occupation against the Palestinians, including the ongoing brutal war of genocide in the Gaza Strip, its crimes in the West Bank, its violations of religious sanctities, its plans to expand settlements and Judaize Jerusalem, and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid to civilians, will not succeed in forcing the Palestinian people to leave their land or in confiscating their legitimate rights,” the statement added.
The ministry further urged decisive action by the international community, emphasising that silence in the face of such statements and policies will only deepen the crisis.
It stressed that the global community must “unite with determination to confront the extremist and provocative policies of the Israeli occupation, in order to prevent the continuation of the cycle of violence in the region and its spread to the world”.
The ministry underscored that “the only guarantee for achieving sustainable peace in the Middle East is reaching a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian cause, in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative and the two-state solution, which guarantees the establishment of an independent, viable Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, and ensures the Palestinian people enjoy their inalienable rights”.
Egypt has also strongly condemned recent comments, describing them as part of “ongoing attempts to prolong escalation in the region and perpetuate instability while avoiding accountability for Israeli violations in Gaza”.
Cairo reaffirmed its “categorical rejection of forcibly or coercively displacing Palestinians from their land,” emphasising that targeting civilians, essential infrastructure, and daily life to compel departure constitutes a “flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and amounts to ethnic cleansing”.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry called on the international community to “activate accountability mechanisms against such acts,” warning that these practices are “increasingly being used as political propaganda within Israel due to the absence of international justice”.
The statement also made clear that Egypt will never be complicit in such measures or serve as a conduit for Palestinian displacement, describing this as a “red line” that cannot be crossed.
Cairo further urged an end to “the chaos Israel seeks to impose,” calling for “an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, Israeli withdrawal from the enclave, and international support to enable the legitimate Palestinian Authority to return to Gaza”.
The statements comes as Egypt and Qatar continue to lead mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel, seeking to secure a ceasefire in Gaza and facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid into the coastal enclave.
