The latest edition of the Forum is taking place under the slogan ‘Collaboration for the Intelligent Age’ where attendees will address the most pressing global issues.
Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, is leading Doha’s delegation at this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, running January 20 to 24.
Majed Al-Ansari, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson, told Doha’s state news agency (QNA) that Sheikh Mohammed will participate in a high-level session on geopolitics titled “Diplomacy amid Disorder” on Tuesday.
The senior Qatari official will also engage in a dialogue session with the President of the World Economic Forum, Borge Brende, Al-Ansari added.
Other officials representing Qatar include Minister of Finance Ali Al Kuwari; Minister of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Faisal Al Thani; and the Governor of Qatar Central Bank, Sheikh Bandar Al-Thani.
The Gulf state’s participation in the Forum’s 55th edition would further reinforce “Qatar’s position as a reliable international partner and a vital global hub”, QNA reported.
The latest edition of the Forum is taking place under the slogan “Collaboration for the Intelligent Age” where attendees will address the most pressing global issues, including geopolitical developments and the transformation in the energy sector.
Sheikh Mohammed’s upcoming participation comes at a pivotal moment for Qatar, following its successful mediation of a ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel following more than a year of stalled negotiations.
The deal, which took effect on Sunday morning, resulted in the release 90 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails after Hamas handed over three female captives on the first day.
Qatar, which has hosted the Hamas political office since 2012, has earned global praise for mediating the deal.
Last year, Sheikh Mohammed also led Qatar’s delegation at the WEF, and used his platform to outline the regional tensions – particularly the Houthi attacks on Israeli and U.S-owned vessels in the Red Sea – that were sparked by Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip.
“We need to address the real, central issue, which is Gaza, in order to get everything else diffused. Otherwise, if we are just focusing on the symptoms and not treating the real issue, it will be temporary,” Sheikh Mohammed, told a panel at the WEF on January 16, 2024.
Israel waged its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, killing nearly 47,000 Palestinians while creating a humanitarian catastrophe in the blockaded territory.
The published figure of deaths is an undercount of the actual death toll with thousands missing and still trapped under the rubble. A study published by The Lancet journal last week said the death toll is likely 40 percent higher than the figure shared by Palestine’s health authorities.