Key Points
- Qatar is playing a lead role in efforts to free hostages seized by Hamas from Israel.
- Over the last two decades, Qatar has gained a reputation as a mediator in foreign relations.
- Qatar is in a "unique position" to facilitate dialogue between both sides of the Hamas-Israel conflict, experts say.
With Qatar playing a lead role in efforts to free hostages seized by Hamas from Israel, experts say the tiny Middle Eastern nation, while not exactly neutral, could also play a key role in helping to resolve the devastating conflict.
This week the Gulf state has been engaged in intense diplomacy behind the scenes and secured the release of four hostages – an American woman and her teenage daughter plus two elderly Israeli women – held by Palestinian militants.
Qatar, similar to the size of Greater Sydney geographically, hopes to secure more releases, Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari has said.
Qatar is surrounded by the Persian Gulf and shares only one land border, with Saudi Arabia. Source: SBS News
"Qatar is being used by Israel and the US as that conduit with Hamas," he told SBS News. "It has played a similar role in the past – it has allegedly supported Hamas, while Israel has used Qatar to pass messages to and receive messages from Hamas."
When Hamas militants stormed across the Gaza border on 7 October, they killed more than 1,400 people, according to Israeli officials, and snatched more than 220 hostages, taking them back to Gaza.
Family, friends and community members in Tel Aviv, Israel, call for the release of their loved ones, who are among more than 200 hostages captured by Hamas after their unprecedented assault on communities near Gaza. Source: Getty / Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times
Alam Saleh, expert in Middle Eastern studies at the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies at the Australian National University, describes Qatar as "a small country with big ambitions".
"At this stage, its role is extremely important," he told SBS News.
"It's in a unique position to create dialogue between some very angry players."
So, how has Qatar emerged as a mediator, what are its links to Hamas, how could it help to resolve the conflict and what does it stand to gain in the process?
What mediation roles has Qatar played in the past?
Over the last two decades, Qatar has gained a reputation as a valuable mediator in foreign relations.
It facilitated talks between the rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas in 2006; it helped unite Lebanese leaders into forming a political agreement during the 2008 crisis; it has mediated between different militia groups in Iraq; and it has held a peace process for Sudan amid the Darfur conflict.
Most famously, it set up a political "office" in 2013 that allowed the Afghan Taliban to facilitate peace talks with the US, the UN and various other governments and organisations.
. Iran freed five Americans in exchange for five Iranians held in the US, for which it received thanks from US President Joe Biden. The deal also included the release of $US6 billion ($9.4 billion) in funds frozen by US ally South Korea, though the funds remain parked in a Qatar bank account, according to Reuters.
"We have strict oversight of the funds and we retain the right to freeze them," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a news conference in Tel Aviv last week, adding that the funds had to be used for humanitarian purposes.
So is Qatar neutral in the Hamas-Israel conflict?
Certainly not.
"Qatar has not condemned Hamas. They have however condemned Israel," Saleh said.
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani has openly criticised Israel's backers, saying they have given it "free licence to kill" in its war with Hamas.
Major powers, including the United States, Britain and France, have rallied to support Israel and affirmed its right to defend itself after this month's deadly attack.
The Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 704 Palestinians in the last 24 hours, with reports indicating a total of 5,791 Palestinian casualties since the war began on 7 October. Source: Getty / Saher Alghorra/Middle East Images/AFP
"While Qatar is not neutral, it is the best mediator at this stage," Saleh added.
What are Qatar's links with Hamas?
Qatar is widely perceived as a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood, a transnational Islamist organisation founded in Egypt that influences other Islamist groups around the world.
Qatar also has open channels of communication with Hamas and has hosted its political office since 2012.
Al-Ansari, who serves as an adviser to Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, said Hamas' bureau in Doha is currently communicating "effectively" with its members in Gaza, with Hamas expressing their willingness to release hostages regardless of their nationalities.
Qatar has also provided financial aid to the Gaza Strip for years, which officials in Doha have said is coordinated with Israel, the UN and the US.
These links explain why, on Tuesday, Israel's foreign minister Eli Cohen urged Qatar to help secure the release of more hostages.
“I also asked Qatar – which has financed, for more than 10 years, Hamas, which is giving harbour to the leaders of Hamas – to work to release all the hostages. It's in your hand. You are responsible to them. Do it immediately," he said in a media conference.
A US official, meanwhile, said the US administration was keeping Qatari officials informed of its advice to Israel so that they were are fully up to speed as hostage negotiations continue.
Hamas is a Palestinian military and political group that has gained power in the Gaza Strip since winning legislative elections there in 2006.
Its stated aim is to establish a Palestinian state, while refusing to recognise Israel’s right to exist.
Hamas, in its entirety, is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, Canada, the UK and the US while
New Zealand and Paraguay list only its military wing as a terrorist group.
How important could Qatar's role be over the coming weeks?
Saleh believes that the Hamas-Israel conflict will not be resolved through military means but through dialogue.
At a time when neither the US nor Israel are willing to talk to Hamas, Qatar's role could be crucial, he says.
"Qatar has a good relationship with the US, a de-facto relationship with Israel, influence on Hamas and in Gaza, and also a good relationship with Iran. This puts them in a unique position to create a link between these very angry players, which might help everyone at this stage when dialogue is required so urgently.
"Qatar is the only country that is trusted by almost all players at the moment. There may be other countries that have a great deal of influence, but not all countries would accept their involvement."
Over the last two decades, Qatar has gained a reputation as a mediator in foreign relations. Source: SBS News
But the Middle Eastern nation can only achieve so much in isolation.
"The question is whether the US and Israel are willing to negotiate, or to involve Qatar in doing so," he added.
What's in it for Qatar?
Qatar is a small nation that consists mainly of flat, low-lying desert surrounded by the warm seas of the Persian Gulf. It has only one shared land border – with Saudi Arabia.
It also has a tiny population of around 2.6 million, the vast majority of whom live in its capital Doha.
Doha is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Source: Getty / Walter Bibikow
Qatar has sought to be recognised not only in terms of its political influence but also via its economic, sporting and media power.
It splashed billions of dollars to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup and is home to the region's most respected news agency, Al Jazeera, which the state financially supports.
"It's using its diplomatic skills to play a role in the international arena," Saleh added.
"This is part of Qatar's attempt to enhance its soft power in the region and even beyond."
