Gulf states to activate joint defence mechanism, as Qatar calls for 'concrete' response to Israeli attack
Gulf states to activate joint defence mechanism, as Qatar calls for 'concrete' response to Israeli attack
Gulf leaders on Monday said they would convene the Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) joint defence body for a meeting, after Qatar called for a "concrete" response to Israel's attack on Doha last week.
The leaders of the GCC were among more than 50 from Muslim and Arab nations who gathered in Qatar, where emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani gave a forceful speech criticising the "blatant, treacherous, [and] cowardly” Israeli attack on Hamas political officials.
Thani called on his counterparts to take “concrete steps to address the state of madness of power, arrogance and bloodthirstiness obsession that has befallen the government of Israel”.
In response, the GCC - a body representing the six Gulf countries - issued a statement condemning the “brutal Israeli aggression against the sisterly State of Qatar”, which it called “a direct threat to joint Gulf security and to regional peace and stability”.
The GCC agreed to call a meeting of the Joint Defence Council and Higher Military Committee.
The committees will "assess the defense posture of the member states and the sources of threat in light of the Israeli aggression", the statement added, saying that they will "activate joint defense mechanisms and Gulf deterrence capabilities".
The GCC members signed a joint defence agreement in 2000, which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all. The GCC said it was ready “to harness all capabilities to support the sisterly State of Qatar and protect its security, stability, and sovereignty against any threats”.
The GCC’s commitment to self-defence, however, is not as ironclad as that of the Nato military alliance. There is no coherent GCC military command structure.
During previous attacks on members, such as those by Yemen’s Houthis on Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the GCC did not mount a collective defence effort.
But Gulf leaders were already alarmed over Israeli belligerence in Lebanon, Syria and Iran. Their populations are also seething with anger over Israel's genocide in Gaza, where over 64,900 Palestinians have been killed. The Gulf has also been shocked by the US’s indifference to Israel's attacks on the enclave.
US indifference
Middle East Eye revealed last week that US President Donald Trump “blessed” Israel’s attack on Qatar. On Monday, the Axios news site confirmed MEE’s report of Trump's prior knowledge and consent.
Some US officials who would normally be in contact with the US operations centre in Doha reported radio silence to MEE when the attack took place, implying that communications went dark to facilitate the operation.
The rich Sunni monarchs of the Gulf have long depended on the US for their security. Qatar is home to the US’s largest military base in the region, and the building bombed by Israel was located a stone's throw from the US ambassador’s residence in Doha.
Analysts tell MEE that there is some internal dissent within the UAE - Israel’s closest Arab partner - over how to respond to the Israeli attack on Qatar. Haaretz reported last week that Qatar had asked the UAE to close its embassy in Israel.
The Doha conference played out while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.
During a joint press conference with Rubio, Netanyahu refused to rule out further attacks on countries with Hamas members. Egypt, Turkey and Qatar are all known to host Hamas officials at various times. Turkey is a Nato member.
Rubio did not outright condemn the Israeli attack.
Meanwhile, Trump gave a rambling answer that appeared to imply US involvement in the attack and did not rule out further Israeli strikes.
“Qatar has been a great ally to the US. A lot of people don’t know that, and its emir is a wonderful person. I also told Netanyahu that when we attack others, we must be careful,” Trump said.
Qatar and Egypt have played a key role in mediating between Hamas and Israel at the US’s request. Following the Israeli attack on Doha, some analysts and diplomats raised the possibility of Qatar ending its mediation efforts.
But on Monday, Rubio appeared to brush off mediation as irrelevant, saying Hamas is “a terrorist group, a barbaric group, whose stated mission is the destruction of the Jewish state. So we’re not counting on that [a ceasefire] happening”.
