The humanitarian cooperation between Qatar and Türkiye has strengthened in recent years, particularly during major crises.
Qatar’s National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) and the Ombudsman of Türkiye are boosting their joint cooperation in the humanitarian field with the signing of a new agreement.
The signing took place in Ankara on Saturday by NHRC’s Chairperson, Maryam Al-Attiyah, and Chief Ombudsman of Türkiye, Mehmet Akarca, Qatar’s state news agency (QNA) reported.
The agreement is set to strengthen the partnership between the two entities by enabling the exchange of expertise, the development of strategic plans, and training programmes to ensure an effective response to humanitarian issues.
Both countries would also work to assist “in human rights issues and freedoms for citizens”, QNA added.
A meeting took place between Al-Attiyah and Akarca on the sidelines of the signing, where they discussed the human rights challenges in light of Israel’s occupation of Palestine amid the ongoing policy of double standards.
“Al-Attiyah expressed her pride in the convergence of the roles played by the State of Qatar and the Republic of Türkiye in maintaining international peace and security, as well as in mediation for the peaceful resolution of conflicts,” QNA reported.
She noted that Türkiye “is one of the leading countries in the field of legislation related to women’s rights” given that it is a signatory of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
The NHRC’s chairperson also proposed organising a joint training course over combating domestic violence to exchange “experiences and effective legislation” between Doha and Ankara.
Qatar-Türkiye’s humanitarian cooperation
The humanitarian cooperation between Qatar and Türkiye has strengthened in recent years, particularly during major crises.
This was seen during the devastating February 2023 earthquake that struck Türkiye and Syria, killing more than 55,000 people.
Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani had ordered the launch of an air bridge shortly after the earthquake, the worst to hit the area in a century.
Sheikh Tamim had also met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul in February 2023 as the first leader to visit Türkiye following the deadly earthquakes.
The Amir had donated QAR 50m ($14m) to earthquake victims on live television during the Oun and Sanad campaign, which gathered QAR 168,015,836 (about $19m).
The humanitarian cooperation extends to issues in other parts of the world, most prominently in the Gaza Strip following Israel’s genocidal war.
Qatar and Türkiye had launched an aid ship last May, which carried approximately 2,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
The aid initiative was prepared under the coordination of Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) and Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD).
This followed a visit from a Turkish delegation to discuss humanitarian aid cooperation in the Gaza Strip, which resulted in the cooperation to adopt the “Early Recovery Plan”.