Qatar emir slams 'shameful' inaction on Gaza genocide

Qatar's ruler has hit out at what he called "shameful" international inaction over Israel's "genocide" in Gaza as he opened a Gulf Cooperation Council meeting in Doha on Tuesday.

In his opening remarks, the emir accused Israel of committing a genocide, noting that the "crimes" of Israeli forces help "deepen the sentiment of injustice and an absence of international legitimacy".

"It is a disgrace on the international community to allow this heinous crime to continue for more than two months – where the systematic and purposeful killing of innocent civilians continues, including women and children," Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani said.

"Why is the international community turning their back on Palestinian children and adopting dual standards?" he said.

Israel's onslaught of Gaza has killed at least 16,160 people - with around 70 percent of these being children and women.

Qatar was a key mediator in negotiations that resulted in a seven-day truce, which saw scores of Israeli captives freed in return for Palestinian women and children prisoners and the humanitarian aid.

The truce ended on Friday, however, with Israel resuming bombardment of the Gaza Strip and killing hundreds of people.

Qatar's ruler said his country was "constantly working to renew" the truce, but added this was "not an alternative to a permanent ceasefire".

He called for "an international investigation into the massacres committed by Israel" and for the Security Council "to assume its legal responsibility and act to end this barbaric war, and compel Israel to return to credible negotiations to achieve a just solution to the Palestinian issue".

'Blatant aggression'

Some members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have moved towards closer ties with Israel in recent years.

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain normalised ties with Israel in 2020, and Saudi Arabia was seen as close to doing the same.

But the war has put a halt to Saudi Arabia's efforts.

In a joint statement, the GCC expressed "deep concern" with what it called "blatant Israeli aggression" in Gaza.

The council praised the efforts of Qatar, Egypt and the United States in negotiating the humanitarian pause, urging a fresh truce "immediately" to "achieve a complete and sustainable ceasefire".

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the session and accused Israel of "war crimes" and "crimes against humanity in Gaza", which he said "should not be left unanswered".

Both Turkey and Qatar have been vocal supporters of the Palestinian cause and have opened channels of communication with Hamas.

Qatar, a US ally, also hosts a Hamas office which doubles as the residence of its self-exiled leader, Ismail Haniyeh.

This has enabled it to play a key role in mediating between Hamas and Israel, with US support.

Agencies contributed to this report.