Hamas urges Arab, Muslim states to impose political, economic boycott on Israel after Doha attack

By Tarek Chouiref
ISTANBUL (AA) – The Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Sunday denounced Israel’s strike on Doha as a “deliberate attempt” to assassinate its negotiating delegation and a “grave violation” of Qatar’s sovereignty, urging Arab and Muslim states to impose a political and economic boycott on Israel.

In a message to Arab and Islamic foreign ministers, as well as the UN, African Union and other international bodies, Hamas said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government bore the “full responsibility” for sabotaging mediation efforts and derailing ceasefire talks.

The movement said the Doha attack came a day after its delegation, including lead negotiator Khalil al-Hayya, met Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who handed them a new proposal for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. The team was meeting to discuss the offer on Sept. 9 when Israeli aircraft targeted al-Hayya’s home.

According to Hamas, the attack killed al-Hayya’s son Humam, his office director Jihad Lubad, three aides and a Qatari security guard. Several family members were wounded, though the negotiators survived.

Hamas said the assault was aimed at “undermining the very principle of mediation” and reflected Israel’s repeated pattern of reversing agreements and committing massacres. It recalled the collapse of a Jan. 17 deal, as well as the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year despite the group’s acceptance of a mediation initiative at the time.

The group called on Arab and Muslim states, along with the wider international community, to pressure Israel to halt its military campaign, isolate it politically and economically, and pursue its leaders before international courts for genocide and war crimes.

Hamas reaffirmed that it is a national liberation movement seeking Palestinian independence with Jerusalem as its capital, stressing that its elected leadership cannot be treated as legitimate military targets.

Arab and Islamic foreign ministers held a preparatory meeting in Doha on Sunday ahead of Monday’s emergency summit, which will bring together heads of state. The gathering is also expected to discuss the activation of a long-proposed joint Arab military force, an initiative first advanced by Egypt nearly a decade ago.

The summit comes after Tuesday’s Israeli airstrike on a residential compound in Doha that killed five Hamas members, as the group was reviewing a US proposal to end the war in Gaza, where nearly 65,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.