Qatar says efforts to achieve cease-fire in Gaza still ongoing

CAIRO, Egypt

Qatar's efforts to achieve a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip are still in progress, as dialogue is the best way to handle the most complex conflicts, said the country's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, criticizing the international community's double standards for failing to stop Israel's onslaught on the besieged enclave, which has also widened the gap between the West and the East.

“The current crisis in Gaza clearly demonstrated the size of the gap between East and West, and between successive generations, and the double standards in the international community,” Al Thani said during his speech at the opening of the 21st edition of the Doha Forum in the Qatari capital, according to the official news agency QNA.

“History has taught us that dialogue is the best way to confront the most complex conflicts if there is will and wise political leadership,” he said, stressing that “this is the basis of the State of Qatar's belief in the importance of mediation in resolving conflicts and its efforts to achieve a cease-fire."

Qatar, along with Egypt and the US, led mediation during the Israeli war, which broke out on Oct. 7, resulting in a humanitarian pause that lasted for one week until Dec. 1.

At least 17,700 Palestinians have been killed and more than 48,780 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks by Israeli forces on the enclave since Oct. 7 following the cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.

Earlier, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani inaugurated the two-day Doha Forum, with the participation of heads of state, government, and regional and international organizations, including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, according to the news agency.

The forum, themed "Building Shared Futures," is addressing crises, most notably developments in the Gaza situation.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi