In an exclusive interview with Tel Aviv Tribune, Sheikh Mohammed shares details of truce negotiations in Gaza and Syria.
Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has called for the full implementation of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement and expressed hope that the next phase will be final.
In an exclusive interview with Tel Aviv Tribune on Friday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he now expects “the (UN) Security Council to issue a binding resolution to implement the agreement ( ceasefire).
On Wednesday, Qatar, Egypt and the United States announced that Hamas and Israel had reached a multi-phase deal to end the war in Gaza and exchange Israeli captives held in the strip for Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli prisons.
Mediators said the ceasefire in Gaza would come into effect on Sunday. The first phase of the agreement lasts seven weeks and will see an increase in humanitarian aid, a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces and the release of Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The second phase is expected to begin in March, provided that the first phase goes smoothly according to Israel.
The Israeli cabinet is expected to ratify the ceasefire agreement on Friday.
Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Tel Aviv Tribune’s Stefanie Dekker said the Israeli government was holding a meeting to discuss the issue.
“This meeting was supposed to take place on Saturday, but pressure from the mediators meant that it started today,” she said.
Sheikh Mohammed stressed that Qatar and Egypt played an important role as mediators in the truce talks. He said the joint work of the outgoing Biden administration and members of new President-elect Donald Trump’s team was decisive in reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
He stressed, however, that Qatar’s position is only a mediator and declared that “the administration of Gaza after the war is a Palestinian affair.”
Sheikh Mohammed also stressed the importance of mobilizing international support for Gaza and establishing mechanisms to support affected families.
“A humanitarian protocol was concluded regarding the aid delivery mechanism in order to avoid blackmail,” he said.
“Not logical” sanctions
In addition to negotiating a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, Qatar is also working to strengthen its relations with the new de facto Syrian administration led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, whose group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS ) led the opposition offensive that toppled longtime Syrian leader Bashar al-Sham. Assad last month.
Sheikh Mohammed met with al-Sharaa in Damascus on Thursday and called for sanctions on Syria to be lifted.
“We have made efforts to lift sanctions from the first day of the fall of the (Assad) regime and we do not want Syria to collapse,” Sheikh Mohammed said.
“Sanctions were imposed on the Assad regime and no longer make sense today. The new administration is not expected to simultaneously address international concerns and work for its people under sanctions,” he added.
The United States and the European Union have both imposed sanctions on al-Assad and his government for committing crimes during the war, which began after security forces cracked down on pro-democracy protesters in 2011 Washington and Brussels have not yet made a decision on lifting these sanctions. sanctions, but have begun to express interest in cooperating with the new Syrian administration.
Sheikh Mohammed also criticized Israeli moves to occupy territory near the Golan Heights in southern Syria.
“We reject Israel’s irresponsible act of incursion into the buffer zone in Syria. We spoke with Ahmad al-Sharaa and affirmed the need for
withdrawal and that the incursion should not create a new reality,” he said.
Israel deployed military units last month to the buffer zone, which extends along the Golan Heights and separates Syria and Israel, following the overthrow of Al-Assad. The area was officially designated a demilitarized zone as part of a 1974 UN-brokered ceasefire.