Qatar commences legal proceedings following Israeli strike on Doha

A Qatari legal team, headed by minister of state for foreign affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al-Khulaifi, has started legal proceedings after an Israeli strike on Tuesday targeted buildings in a busy area, and killed six people - five of them associated with Hamas and one a Qatari security officer.

The Israeli strike was intended to kill Hamas officials, striking at 4pm local time as negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire were underway.

Qatar on Wednesday sent a letter to the secretary-general of the UN, Antonio Guterres regarding the Israeli aggression.

According to Qatar’s News Agency (QNA), the letter was delivered by Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Said al-Thani, the permanent representative of the state of Qatar to the UN.

Qatar has since called for the letter to be circulated to the Security Council members and issued as an official document.

It further issued a strong condemnation of the "criminal attack, which constitutes a flagrant violation of all international laws and norms and is a serious threat to the security and safety of Qataris and residents on its territory".

A statement from Qatar added that it "will not tolerate reckless Israeli behaviour and its continued tampering with regional security, or any action targeting Qatar’s security and sovereignty. Investigations are underway at the highest level, and further details will be announced as soon as they become available".

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abudlrahman al-Thani,  described the Israeli strikes on Doha as a "treacherous" attack and a "rogue act".

In a press conference, al-Thani said that "the State of Qatar reserves the right to respond to the Israeli attack, and will deal firmly with any reckless breach or aggression that threatens its security and the stability of the region".

According to reports in Arabic media, Qatar’s interior ministry said it is continuing to identify the victims of the Israeli strikes. The ministry confirmed that specialised departments and forensics experts have been tasked with carrying out investigations.

Qatar’s ministry of interior previously announced that a member of the Internal Security Force, Badr Saad Mohammed al-Humaidi al-Dosari was pronounced dead following the strikes.

Khalil al-Hayya, the son of Khalil al-Hayya, the head of Hamas’ political bureau, was also killed in the strike.

Several security personnel were also injured while they were working during the Strike.

In a statement, Hamas named a number of individuals who were killed in the attack, including Jihad Labad, Abdullah Abdul Wahid, Moemen Hassouna and Ahmed al-Mamluk.

Qatar’s cabinet is expected to discuss the aggression again later today.