The phone call took place in the wake of the assassination of Hamas’ political chief on Wednesday morning in Iran.
Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the latest regional tensions following Israel’s assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh.
The discussions took place over the phone on Wednesday, where the Qatari and U.S. officials spoke about regional developments and the latest developments in joint mediation efforts to end the war in the Gaza Strip.
According to Qatar’s foreign ministry, Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister, and Blinken stressed the need to continue joint efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip that would “alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people.”
Both sides also reiterated the importance of a deal that would “guarantee the release of hostages and prisoners, open the door to the possibility of achieving broader stability” and avoid major regional escalations.
Blinken also thanked Sheikh Mohammed “for the decisive role played by the State of Qatar in achieving lasting regional peace.”
The phone call took place in the wake of the assassination of Hamas’s political chief on Wednesday morning in Iran. Haniyeh, who has lived in Qatar since 2019, was in Tehran for the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Hamas confirmed Haniyeh’s assassination in a statement, where it said he “was killed in a treacherous Zionist raid on his residence in Tehran.”
Qatar strongly condemned the move and described it as “a henious crime, a dangerous escalation and a blatant violation of international and humanitarian law.”
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that this assassination and the reckless Israeli behaviour in continuing to target civilians in Gaza would lead to the region sliding into a cycle of chaos and undermine the chances for peace,” the Qatari foreign ministry said in a statement.
Other countries that joined the global condemnations include Turkiye, Iran, Egypt, Jordan, Russia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, Algeria, Malaysia, Lebanon among others.
The attack came amid ongoing efforts led by Qatar and Egypt to reach a ceasefire and a captives release deal, with talks facing a prolonged stalemate since the expiration of last year’s truce.
Since the beginning of the war in the Gaza Strip, Israel has killed at least 39,400 people, mainly women and children, and wounded 90,996 others.
Qatar’s prime minister took to social media to question the Israeli assassination of Haniyeh.
“Political assassinations and continued targeting of civilians in Gaza while talks continue leads us to ask, how can mediation succeed when one party assassinates the negotiator on the other side? Peace needs serious partners and a global stance against the disregard for human life,” Sheikh Mohammed said.
Meanwhile, Blinken said that Washington, D.C. was “not aware of or involved in” the killing of Haniyeh.
In 2018, the U.S. State Department designated Haniyeh as a terrorist after the former Donald Trump administration decided to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Haniyeh was widely perceived as the face of Hamas diplomacy and played an active role throughout the latest mediation efforts.
The killing of Haniyeh is widely expected to further hinder efforts aimed at reaching a ceasefire as escalations between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon also increase.
