Qatar stresses 'security guarantees' for any Israel-Palestine peace plan

By Ibrahim al-Khazen

ISTANBUL (AA) – Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Monday said any peace plan between Palestine and Israel in the future would require "security guarantees" so that they do not pose a threat to each other.

“We don’t want to see any country launching a war against its neighbor," Sheikh Mohammed said at the Atlantic Council in Washington.

He also said his country's role is to reach a settlement that allows prisoners on both sides to return to their homes and stops the bombing of Gaza and killing of civilians.

He stressed that what Israel is doing won't return Israeli captives in Gaza.

Al Thani said the parties to the conflict have made “progress” in negotiations recently and are in a “much better place” than they were a few weeks ago. He added that the progress made might lead to a permanent cease-fire.

“The only way forward for us to have a peaceful region is the two-state solution,” the prime minister argued, stressing that his country believes in peace, backs the Palestinian cause and believes in two peoples living side by side.

To a question about the future Palestinian state, he said: "Our position is that the fate of the Palestinians should remain in the hands of the Palestinians."

"They (the Palestinians) are the ones who should decide what will be the way forward," he added.

Qatar is actively engaged in talks and mediation efforts between Israel and the Hamas group on a possible cease-fire deal in Gaza.

When asked about the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), he stressed that it is the only agency that can provide help and aid for the Palestinians.

Tel Aviv has alleged that some of the agency’s employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, pushing at least 12 countries to suspend their funds to the agency.

"These claims (need) to be investigated," he said, adding: “But (UNRWA) cannot be punished because of the (acts) of some employees.”

Israel launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, killing at least 26,637 Palestinians and injuring 65,387. Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

On the tension with the Houthi group in the Red Sea, the Qatari prime minister said his country is not currently engaged with Yemen’s Houthis over their tension with the US.

"Qatar is not mediating with Houthis, but Qatar is pressing Iran to de-escalate regional security situation," Sheikh Mohammed said.

Houthis said they have been targeting Israel-linked vessels in the Red Sea in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza, prompting the US and Britain to launch retaliatory airstrikes against Houthi targets inside Yemen.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar