Hamas criticizes Saudi foreign minister for comments about Qatar crisis
Hamas on Wednesday criticized Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir for calling on Qatar, one of the terrorist organization’s biggest sponsors, to sever its ties with the Gaza-based group.
“We in Hamas express our disappointment and disapproval of Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir’s statements that incited against Hamas,” read an official Hamas statement. “These statements are shocking to the Palestinian people and the Arab and Islamic nations who consider the Palestinian issue to be their top priority.”
Speaking to reporters in Paris on Tuesday, Jubeir said Qatar needs to stop supporting “extremist groups” such as Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
The senior Saudi official’s comments came just days after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and a handful of other Arab states officially cut ties with Qatar, accusing Doha of backing extremist groups and Iran.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri also took issue with Jubeir’s comments, calling them “hostile toward the Palestinian resistance and complimentary of Zionists.”
Qatar, one of Hamas’s staunchest allies, has sent millions of dollars to Gaza to support its governance efforts, including hundreds of millions for reconstruction and millions for the energy sector. When Gazans took to the streets to protest Hamas’s handling of an electricity crisis last winter, Doha sent $12 million for needed fuel, effectively bailing out Hamas.
Qatar also has served as headquarters for Hamas’s diaspora leadership, hosting a number of its most senior leaders, including former Hamas Politburo chairman Khaled Mashaal and his aides.
Ghassan Khatib, an expert in Palestinian politics, said Tuesday the rupture in relations between Qatar and its Arab neighbors could hurt Hamas’s standing.
“Assuming that the Arab states continue to pressure Qatar, Hamas could lose the different forms of political, financial and logistical support it receives from Qatar,” Khatib said. “That would be really bad news for Hamas.”