Qatar rejects normalisation with Israel before solving Palestinian situation

Qatar has completely rejected normalising ties with Israel, stressing that this is not the core of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle.

Speaking to Bloomberg on Monday, spokesperson of Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lolwah Rashid Al-Khater said: “We don’t think that normalization was the core of this conflict and hence it can’t be the answer.”

Al-Khater added: “The core of this conflict is about the drastic conditions that the Palestinians are living under” as “people without a country, living under occupation.”

Meanwhile, she pointed to progress towards a solution to the crisis with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE who imposed a stifling blockade on their Gulf neighbour in June 2017.

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Commending Kuwait’s efforts to bring an end to the dispute and the economic and diplomatic blockade, she said: “In the past two months, there have been messages and messengers moving back and forth.”

“It is too early to talk about a real breakthrough,” but “the next few weeks may reveal something.”