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Qatar stated Hamas leaders aren’t present in Doha
According to Qatar’s government and a senior Palestinian official, the top Hamas leader outside of Gaza and other important members of its negotiating team have left Doha.
A spokesperson from Qatar’s foreign ministry stated that Hamas’s office was no longer operational as Qatar had paused its mediation efforts for a Gaza ceasefire agreement, but emphasized that it was only temporarily closed.
The Palestinian representative informed the BBC that Hamas negotiators had changed their whereabouts in the area and were hiding their locations to prevent any embarrassment for the countries hosting them.
However, they mentioned that Hayya was probably in Turkey since he had visited the country multiple times in the last two months.
The official rejected claims that Qatar had requested Hamas to depart, but stated that the Gulf state appeared to be taking cautious steps to prevent any conflicts between President Joe Biden’s current administration and President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration.
Qatar has been home to Hamas’s political office since 2012 and has been instrumental in enabling indirect talks between the organization and Israel. However, the latest updates indicate a change in their connection.
Earlier in the month, Qatar declared a halt to its attempts to negotiate a Gaza ceasefire and stated that they would only start again “when the parties show willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war”. . However, it refuted claims that Hamas leaders were requested to depart.
Majed al-Ansari Remarks
During a press conference on Tuesday, Majed al-Ansari, the spokesperson for the foreign ministry, affirmed the information that “the leaders of Hamas that are within the negotiating team are now not in Doha”.
“As you know, they move between different capitals. I don’t want to get into details of what that means,” he added.
“But what I can tell you very clearly is that the office of Hamas in Doha was created for the sake of the negotiating process. Obviously, when there is no mediation process, the office itself doesn’t have any function.”
He also stressed that “a decision to close down the office permanently is a decision that you will hear about from us directly and shouldn’t be part of media speculation”.
On Monday, Hamas stated on Telegram that sources within the organization had “denied what some Israeli media outlets had circulated about Hamas leadership leaving Qatar to Turkey”.
Turkish foreign ministry claims
The Turkish foreign ministry also denied the claim, according to sources who spoke to the Turkish news channel NTV: “Hamas political bureau members visit Turkey from time to time. Allegations that the Hamas political bureau moved to Turkey do not reflect the truth.”
“What I would say on behalf of the United States is that we don’t believe the leaders of a vicious terrorist organisation should be living comfortably anywhere, and that certainly includes in a major city of one of our key allies and partners,” he said.
“A number of these individuals are under US indictment, have been under US indictment for some time, and we believe that they should be turned over to the United States,” he added.
He also refused to guess if Turkey would face repercussions as a NATO member for hosting the Hamas leaders.
Turkey does not view Hamas as a terrorist group, unlike Israel, the US, the UK, and several other Western nations, and members of the organization frequently visit the country.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has supported Hamas as a form of resistance and strongly condemned Israel’s military actions in Gaza.
Israel initiated a mission to eliminate Hamas following the group’s unparalleled assault on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, resulting in approximately 1,200 fatalities and 251 individuals being held captive.
According to the health ministry in Gaza controlled by Hamas, over 43,970 individuals have died since then.
While visiting Gaza on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his firm stance against allowing Hamas to participate in the governance of Gaza post-war.
He once again promised to bring all the hostages back alive and reiterated his $5m reward for those who handed over hostages to Israel.
Israel reports that there are still 97 hostages being held, with 34 of them believed to be deceased. Four more hostages were abducted prior to October 7, with two of them presumed to have lost their lives.
