Qatar has confirmed it is actively mediating efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza, as United States President Donald Trump claimed that an agreement between Israel and Hamas could be reached within the next week.
Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, advisor to Qatar’s prime minister and spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Al Jazeera TV that President Trump personally called Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani after Iran attacked a US airbase in Qatar earlier this week.
“It was requested of Qatar by President Trump in his call to His Highness to start the process on finalising between [Israel and Iran] how we can reach an agreement,” Al Ansari said.
“The minute the attack ended, the prime minister went on calls with the vice president of the United States, JD Vance, and we had the calls with the Iranian side as well,” he added.
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Trump said he believed a truce was close. “I think it’s close. I just spoke to some of the people involved,” he said. “We think within the next week we’re going to get a ceasefire.” He did not specify who he had been in contact with.
According to Palestinian officials, Hamas is demanding that Israel end its military operations in Gaza and withdraw forces from areas it seized after breaking the previous ceasefire in March. Hamas has also sought US guarantees that negotiations would continue and that Israel would not violate the truce again if more time was needed.
Trump’s prediction comes amid growing outrage over the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza. Nearly 550 Palestinians have reportedly been killed near aid distribution points since late May, as Israel maintains a blockade on food, water, medicine, and fuel.
On Friday, the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, condemned the killings of civilians trying to collect aid, saying, “The food search must never be a death sentence.”
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders described the situation as “slaughter masquerading as humanitarian aid.”
The controversy escalated further after Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reported that Israeli commanders had ordered troops to fire on unarmed Palestinians seeking food. Gaza’s health authorities said the report was further evidence of “war crimes,” although Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz rejected the allegations.
A spokesperson for the office of Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said they had no information to share about a potential breakthrough. Witkoff previously helped US officials broker a ceasefire and hostage release agreement shortly before Trump took office, but that truce collapsed in March when Israel launched widespread bombing across Gaza.
Meanwhile, Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer is scheduled to travel to Washington next week for talks with Trump administration officials on Gaza, Iran, and the possibility of Netanyahu visiting the White House.
While Qatar has often served as a diplomatic intermediary in the region, this mediation effort involves direct engagement with both Iran and Hamas, underscoring the complex regional dynamics shaping the conflict.
Despite Trump’s optimistic timeline, analysts caution that achieving a ceasefire within days will require all sides to commit to credible guarantees and address both security and humanitarian concerns. (ST)
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