Qatar Emir calls Israeli strike 'cowardly' at emergency summit, after draft resolution issued

World leaders from around the MENA region arrived in Doha on Monday for an emergency summit following an Israeli strike on the Gulf state last week, which left six people dead.

In opening remarks, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani slammed Israel's strike as "blatant, treacherous and cowardly". He also emphasised that Doha was putting in huge effoers to end the war on Gaza when Israel attacked the capital. 

A Qatari draft resolution, seen by The New Arab’s Arabic language sister publication, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, outlined 20 articles that lambasted Israel for its actions, and states that the strike on Doha constituted an attack on all Arab and Islamic countries.

It also says that Arab and Islamic countries will show solidarity with Qatar and take all steps and measures to protect its "security, sovereignty, stability and the safety of its citizens and residents, in accordance with the United Nations Charter".

The resolution noted that Israel’s aggression against Qatar comes despite Doha "serving as a key mediator in efforts to secure a ceasefire, end the war on Gaza and release all the detainees and prisoners".

It slammed the attack as a dangerous escalation that undermines peace efforts and calls on the international community to condemn Israel and take measures to prevent further attacks.

One of the articles in the document condemns any Israeli attempts at displacing Palestinian people from their territories, calling it a crime against humanity, while another denounces Israel’s policies in Gaza, which have triggered an unprecedented humanitarian crisis through the obstruction of aid and land crossings.

The document praises Qatar for its "unwavering commitment to international law and its insistence on preserving its sovereignty and defending its rights through legitimate means," and states that it rejects any attempts at justifying Israel’s aggression.

The resolution from Qatar ends by warning against the "disastrous consequences" of any Israeli decision to annex any part of the occupied Palestinian territories, calling it a "blatant assault on the historical rights of the Palestinian people and a violation of international law".

It highlights repeated Israeli attacks on civilians in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, demanding urgent international action to stop the assaults, with a demand for concrete action against Israel.

In strongly worded remarks to the press, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Ishaq Dar said: "If the countries and the leaders and the statesmen who meet … just sit, make strong speeches without a very clear roadmap [of] how to deal with this situation, it will be very sad."

However, media studies professor Mohammed Elmasry, told Al Jazeera that expectations of strong action against Israel are too high, and that the outcome of the summit is more likely to include economic sanctions, the formation of a military alliance, the closure of airspace, among other softer measures.

Elmasry noted that the number of states present at the summit would likely make it difficult for them to come to a consensus due to differing agendas and stances.

Several key leaders joined the summit on Monday, including Syria’s Ahmed al-Sharaa, Egypt President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon, Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

The Palestinian Authority’s President, Mahmoud Abbas, will also be present at the summit, while Mohammed al-Menfi, the chairman of Libya’s presidential council, will represent Libya at the conference.

Meanwhile, Egypt's President Abdelfattah al-Sisi held a meeting with the Emir of Qatar, where sources reported the former expressed his condolences and stressed Cairo's strong denunciation of Israel's actions. 

Al-Sisi also said that Cairo fully stands in support of Qatar and is ready to provide all assistance to preserve the state's integrity and sovereignty. 

The meeting between the pair touched on regional stability, the importance of cementing a unified vision and a common front to protect Arab national security, as well as the need to reach a Gaza ceasefire deal.

The latest development comes as Qatar warned against the international community’s "double standards," and demanded Israel be held to account for "terrorism" when they struck Hamas negotiators in the capital last week, killing five Palestinians and one Qatari soldier.

The UN Human Rights Council said it will hold an urgent debate on Tuesday to discuss Israel’s recent aggression in Doha, adding that the decision to hold the meeting came after it received two official requests from Pakistan and Kuwait.