DOHA, Nov 10: Qatar has put its Gaza war mediation on hold until Israel and Hamas show "willingness and seriousness" to end the conflict, its foreign ministry spokesman said on Saturday.
The Gulf state told Israel and Hamas last month that it would suspend mediation after nearly a year of failed attempts to broker a ceasefire and hostage-release deal, Majed Al Ansari said.
"Qatar notified the parties 10 days ago, during the last attempts to reach an agreement, that it would stall its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel if an agreement was not reached in that round," he said in a statement.
"Qatar will resume those efforts with its partners when the parties show their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war," Ansari added.
The spokesman also rejected reports that Hamas has been kicked out of Qatar, which has hosted the Palestinian militant group's political office for more than a decade.
"The main goal of the office in Qatar is to be a channel of communication between the concerned parties, and this channel has contributed to achieving a ceasefire in previous stages," he said.
Earlier, a diplomatic source told AFP that Qatar was pulling back from the Gaza talks, adding that the Hamas office "no longer serves its purpose".
"The Qataris informed both the Israelis and Hamas that as long as there is a refusal to negotiate a deal in good faith, they cannot continue to mediate," the source said on condition of anonymity.
"As a consequence, the Hamas political office no longer serves its purpose."
Qatar, along with the United Sates and Egypt, has been engaged in months of fruitless negotiations for a truce with a hostage and prisoner releases.
The Gulf state, also home to a major US military base, has hosted Hamas's political leadership since 2012 with Washington's blessing.
During the talks after Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel last year, both Qatari and US officials indicated that the militant group would remain in Doha as long as its presence offered a viable channel of communication.
Qatar said in April that it was reassessing its role as a mediator in the conflict as it was facing criticism, notably from Israeli and US politicians. —AFP
