Doha summit ends with strong words, no action
TEHRAN – An emergency meeting of Arab and Islamic countries in Qatar on Monday vehemently condemned Israel’s brazen and unprovoked airstrike on Doha last week, denouncing it as a blatant act of aggression that threatens regional stability and undermines efforts to end the war in Gaza.
The attack struck a residential area in the Qatari capital on September 9, where a Hamas delegation was present during U.S.-proposed ceasefire talks over the Gaza conflict. The strike killed five lower-ranking Hamas members, while the leadership survived. A Qatari security officer also lost his life.
Israel’s “cowardly aggression”
Addressing the emergency summit of the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani accused Israel of trying to derail Gaza ceasefire efforts with its attack in Doha.
"Whoever works diligently and systematically to assassinate the party with whom he is negotiating intends to thwart the negotiations," the Qatari Emir said in his opening remarks.
He noted that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "dreams of turning the Arab region into an Israeli sphere of influence, and this is a dangerous illusion." The Qatari Emir also denounced Israel’s “aggression” against his country as “blatant, treacherous, and cowardly.”
"Blatant act of terrorism"
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, who attended the summit, called for unity against Israel’s assaults on regional countries.
“We should act together to stand up to Israeli behavior because Israel has violated the sovereignty of a number of Arab and Muslim states under the false pretext of self-defense,” the Iranian president said. He noted that the weak condemnation of Israel by the international community is allowing it to continue its attacks with impunity.
Pezeshkian denounced Israel’s attack on Qatar as a “blatant act of terrorism,” saying the assault aimed to sabotage efforts to end the genocidal war in Gaza. He said the attack showed that “no Arab or Muslim country is safe from the aggression of the Tel Aviv regime.” The Iranian president further said Israel has crossed “every red line,” ignored every law and principle of logic, but has “unintentionally awakened the collective will of the Islamic community.”
"Israel's banditry"
Other Islamic and world leaders also spoke at the summit, condemning Israeli violations.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani called for a unified response to assaults on any Arab or Islamic nation, asserting that an attack on one should be considered an attack on all. He noted that “the current conditions call for moving from condemnation to coordinated collective action”. He proposed forming “a joint Arab-Islamic committee to convey our position to the UN Security Council and General Assembly, the European Union and other international fora”.
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim warned that words and declarations won’t be enough to stop Israel’s actions in the region. “Our people have become wary of words. They have watched us issue condemnation after condemnation, declaration after declaration, while Israel escalates with impunity, as future generations will ask whether we found the courage to act. We do not ask nations to go beyond their basic obligations,” Ibrahim said.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas urged the international community to hold Israel accountable for its actions. “We call upon the international community to live up to its responsibility, to hold Israel liable and responsible for their crimes and the repeated assault on our countries and peoples, and in this direction, we call for practical measures to prevent any recurrence of these violations,” Abbas said. He emphasized the need to end the war in Gaza.
The Turkish President said the summit demonstrated the Islamic world’s unwavering support for Qatar. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Israel’s attack, which targeted the negotiating team of the Palestinian group Hamas in Qatar, has taken "Israel's banditry" to a new level. "We are facing (Israel's) terrorist mentality that feeds on chaos and blood, and a state that embodies it," the Turkish president said.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II said the attack on Doha is “living proof” that the threat of Israel is “without limits”. The Jordanian King noted that Israel has continued its expansionist policies in the occupied West Bank, undermining the possibility of a two-state solution. He said the summit must produce practical decisions to confront Israel’s actions, end the war in Gaza and prevent the further displacement of Palestinians.
Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Indonesia’s vice president, strongly condemned Israel’s attacks on Qatar and expressed strong solidarity with the Persian Gulf nation.
As for what measures the summit should take in response to Israel, he said that it “must not only issue collective condemnation against Israel, but also urge the United Nations Security Council to fulfill its mandate by taking firm and urgent measures to ensure accountability and prevent any recurrence”.
U.S. complicity
The Israeli assault on Qatar has already drawn fierce regional and global backlash. Even Israel’s closest European allies—Britain, France, and Germany—expressed criticism. On Thursday, in a rare show of unanimity, the United Nations Security Council condemned the strike, with all 15 members, including the United States, backing the move. However, Washington’s criticism of Israel’s action in Qatar must also be seen in the context of its charm offensive toward the Persian Gulf state.
While the administration of President Donald Trump attempted to distance itself from the incident, evidence suggests coordination between Israeli forces and U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), including cooperation with U.S.-controlled air defense systems. The strike on Qatar raises broader concerns that Israel may extend such operations to other regional countries in the future. The United States remains the primary enabler of Israel’s war on Gaza, which began in October 2023. Washington has also thrown its military weight behind Israel’s offensives in the region.
Obscuring military failures
For now, Israel’s continued war on Gaza appears to be a diversion from its failed military strategy in the territory. This has been acknowledged by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir. According to comments leaked to Ynet, Zamir told Knesset lawmakers that Netanyahu has kept the military in the dark about the next stages of the war following the current operation aimed at capturing Gaza City. Channel 12 further reported that Zamir informed senior Israeli leaders that “Hamas will not be defeated militarily and politically even after the operation to capture Gaza City.”
Yet the killing of nearly 65,000 Palestinians in Gaza—including 21,000 children—has become the Netanyahu government’s only measurable outcome, highlighting its failure to eliminate Hamas after the October 7, 2023 attack in southern Israel.
Israel’s strike in Doha must therefore be examined from several angles. First, the Netanyahu government is attempting to obscure its military fiasco in Gaza and its inability to achieve objectives in the June war on Iran, while spinning setbacks as victories.
Second, the Doha attack appears consistent with Israel’s broader regional ambitions. It reflects Israel’s expansionist vision, commonly referred to as “Greater Israel.” Netanyahu has recently voiced open support for this agenda, which aims to extend Israeli influence across parts of Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The United States stands accused of enabling this project by backing Israel’s military actions—not only in Qatar, which hosts the region’s largest U.S. base at Al Udeid Air Base—but also in Gaza, Syria, and Lebanon.
Netanyahu’s political survival also hangs in the balance. His hardline coalition partners have threatened to abandon the government if a ceasefire with Hamas is reached. Ongoing corruption charges against him make prolonging the war a convenient tool to cling to power and deflect attention from his legal troubles.
Normalization enables aggression
Meanwhile, the Doha summit comes exactly five years after the signing of the so-called Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Sudan and Morocco later joined the U.S.-brokered agreement, which broke with the long-held principle that peace with the Palestinians must precede normalization with Israel.
Yet Israel’s continued warmongering across the region shows that the accords have not curbed its aggression. On the contrary, they have emboldened it to expand military operations.
Israel’s unprovoked attacks on sovereign nations, its blatant disregard for international law, and its relentless pursuit of territorial expansion underscore a reckless contempt for peace and stability in the Middle East. Its willingness to strike even the homes of diplomatic mediators and attack nations hosting U.S. military bases exposes a dangerous level of impunity that threatens not only the region but also global security. Unless Israel’s aggressive policies are decisively confronted and contained, the Middle East faces escalating violence and prolonged instability.
Arab nations must re-evaluate their priorities and strengthen their collective stance toward Israel. Since some states would struggle under economic pressure, especially if U.S. aid were withdrawn, it is essential for stronger Arab countries to provide the necessary support to ensure resilience and unity. In addition, Arab states should cut diplomatic ties with Israel, enforce full boycotts, and halt all trade relations to apply growing pressure and demonstrate true solidarity.