Qatar’s PM calls for Gaza ceasefire agreement to be ‘fully implemented’

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the prime minister of Qatar, has demanded that the ceasefire’s initial stages be fully implemented and that the following steps will be decided.

In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera on Friday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he now expects “the]UN] Security Council to issue a binding resolution to implement the]ceasefire] agreement.

Hamas and Israel announced on Wednesday that they had reached a multiphased agreement to end the conflict in Gaza and exchange Israeli prisoners in Israeli jails for Palestinian prisoners.

The ceasefire in Gaza will start taking effect on Sunday, according to the mediators. The agreement’s first phase, which is spread over seven weeks, will see an increase in humanitarian aid, the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the release of Israeli prisoners in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. As long as the first phase runs smoothly, according to Israel, the second phase is anticipated to start in March.

The ceasefire agreement is expected to be approved by the Israeli cabinet later on Friday.

Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Al Jazeera’s Stefanie Dekker said that the Israeli government is holding a meeting to discuss the issue.

” This meeting was expected to take place on Saturday, but pressure from mediators has made them start today, “she said.

Sheikh Mohammed cited the significant mediatorship between Egypt and Qatar. He claimed that the incoming President-elect Donald Trump’s team and the departed Biden administration’s collective efforts were key to achieving the ceasefire agreement in Gaza.

He argued, however, that Qatar’s role as a mediator is limited to the Palestinian government.

Sheikh Mohammed also emphasized the need to mobilize international aid and establish support for the families of the Gaza conflict.

He claimed that a humanitarian protocol has been established regarding the delivery of aid to stop blackmail.

Sanctions “not logical”

Qatar is also focusing on strengthening ties with Syria’s new de facto administration, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, whose Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) organization spearheaded the opposition’s offensive that last month toppled Syria’s longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

Sheikh Mohammed met al-Sharaa in Damascus on Thursday and demanded that the sanctions against Syria be lifted.

” We have been making efforts to lift the sanctions from the first day of the]Assad] regime’s fall, and we do not want Syria to collapse, “Sheikh Mohammed said.

The Assad regime was subject to sanctions, which are absurd at the moment. He continued, “The new administration is not expected to address international concerns and work for its citizens at the same time,” he continued.

Al-Assad and his government were both subject to sanctions by the US and the European Union for allegedly committing crimes during the conflict, which started when security forces began to impose sanctions on pro-democracy protesters in 2011. Washington and Brussels have begun expressing their desire to work together with the new Syrian administration despite not having yet decided to lift the sanctions.

Sheikh Mohammed also criticized Israeli military operations in southern Syria’s vicinity of the Golan Heights.

We object to Israel’s careless invasion of Syria’s buffer zone. We spoke with Ahmad al-Sharaa and stressed the need for Israel.
withdrawal and that the incursion should not create a new reality, “he said.