The News
Israel and Hamas are effectively left without a mediator in talks to broker a ceasefire in Gaza after Qatar halted its mediation efforts. The Gulf nation also reportedly asked Hamas’ political leaders to leave the country, after the latest round of talks made no progress.
The move comes at a particularly uncertain moment for the region: US President-elect Donald Trump has said he wants the war to end before his inauguration in January, but how that would happen is unclear. Most experts agree it’s highly unlikely that fighting in Gaza would come to a complete stop in the near future, a possibility that may now be more remote with Qatar’s decision.
For Qatar, distancing from Hamas could help the country’s diplomatic standing with the incoming Trump administration, a Haaretz columnist wrote: “Qatar’s relations with the first Trump government fluctuated. Doha must now prepare for the second.”