Qatar to continue efforts to resume humanitarian pause in Gaza: Premier

By Ibrahim Al-Khazen

DOHA, Qatar (AA) - Qatar said Sunday that it will continue its efforts with other countries to resume the humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip with the goal of reaching a permanent cease-fire.

“The State of Qatar spared no effort in the mediation process to stop that retaliation war,” Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani said in a speech during the 158th Preparatory Ministerial Council meeting of the 44th session of the Supreme Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) held in Doha, according to the Qatari Foreign Ministry.

Al-Thani reiterated “the State of Qatar's condemnation of the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation and its calling for an immediate, comprehensive and impartial international investigation into those crimes, especially the attacks that targeted civilian, relief and humanitarian facilities.”

He noted that “the meeting convenes while the Council witnessed over the past few days with great sorrow the barbaric aggression and heinous crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian brethren in the Gaza Strip.”

The Israeli army resumed bombing the Gaza Strip early Friday after declaring an end to a week-long humanitarian pause.

At least 509 Palestinians have been killed and 1,316 injured since Friday in Israeli airstrikes, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Israel launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The death toll from Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has surged to 15,523 since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7, the Health Ministry in the besieged Palestinian enclave announced Sunday.

The number of wounded through the same period has risen to 41,316.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi