Israeli forces have killed at least 48 Palestinians, including 10 children, since the beginning of this year.
Qatar renewed its rejection of the Israeli occupation’s plans to ‘judaise’ Jerusalem on Monday in a high-level Arab League conference held in Cairo, amid growing attacks on the city by settlers and forces.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan Al Muraikhi represented the Gulf state during the conference, which focused on supporting Jerusalem. Qatar rejected moving any embassy to Jerusalem and Israeli settlement expansions in the area.
In a statement, Qatar’s foreign ministry stressed the importance of “addressing the tragic reality that ensued in the city of Al Quds Al Sharif, which is now groaning under the weight of racist practices and gross violations against Jerusalemites.”
“This necessitated that the Arab nation assumes its responsibilities towards the political and legal rights violations, the misappropriation of economic and development resources in favour of the Zionist project,” the statement read, citing Al Muraikhi.
The Qatari envoy reiterated the Gulf state’s unwavering support for Palestinians and ending the Israeli occupation while “establishing the State of Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital”.
“His Excellency stressed the need not to neglect the issue of prisoners in Palestine in general, and in the city of Jerusalem in particular, lambasting in this regard Israel’s violations against prisoners, as well as other illegal policies such as house arrests,” the statement added.
Jerusalem has been subjected to increased raids by occupation forces and Israeli settlers who are also protected by the former, as Palestinians face constant obstacles to access the places of worship.
Such flagrant attacks on the holy sites witness an increase during the fasting month of Ramadan, where thousands of Muslim worshippers perform evening prayers together.
Al Muraikhi noted that “Jerusalemites face many racist laws and measures on the part of the occupation government, which seeks to force them to leave the city with the aim of emptying it.”
The statements also echo Qatar’s ongoing support for Palestinians.
Qatar has also maintained its unwavering stance with regards to normalising ties with Israel, unlike some countries in the region including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Last month, Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani called out the double standards approach in addressing the war in Ukraine and the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
“When we are looking at the world mobilising only for specific cases and specific causes and we’ve been in the Middle East suffering for decades from all violations for UN Charters, including from the Palestinian-Israeli issue to the Syrian issue,” Sheikh Mohammed said.
The Qatari diplomat stressed that he would like to see a united stance for such causes, noting that regional issues remain unaddressed. Sheikh Mohammed also highlighted the Gulf region’s efforts in voting for resolutions against aggression between two countries.
Last year was described as the deadliest year for Palestinians in at least a decade, with more than 150 Palestinians killed, per figures gathered by the United Nations.
On Monday, Palestine’s news agency confirmed that Israeli forces killed at least 48 Palestinians, including 10 children, since the beginning of this year.
