Pezeshkian Heads to Doha for Emergency Summit
Tehran - BORNA - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian departed Tehran on Monday for Doha to attend an extraordinary summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), convened in response to Israel’s unprecedented strike on Qatari soil.
The summit, called by Qatar’s Emir, follows the September 9 Israeli airstrike against Qatar. The attack drew widespread condemnation across the Islamic world, with many leaders describing it as a violation of international law and an assault on Qatar’s sovereignty.
Ahead of his departure, Pezeshkian stressed that Israel recognizes “no framework or restriction” in its actions and warned that the regime has attacked multiple Islamic nations—including Lebanon, Syria, Qatar, Iran, and Yemen—while committing genocide in Gaza with the backing of the United States and certain European states. He underlined the need for greater unity: “If Muslims act as one, Israel will not dare so easily to trample international law and attack Islamic countries.”
Foreign ministers of OIC and Arab League member states met in Doha on Sunday to prepare the ground for the leaders’ summit. A draft resolution under discussion condemns Israel’s strike on Qatar, warning that ongoing aggression threatens to derail regional normalization efforts. The document also calls for collective measures to protect sovereignty and confront settlement expansion, ethnic cleansing, and siege tactics.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani described the Israeli attack as “state terrorism” and an assault on “the principle of mediation itself.” He stressed that the incident exposed the fragility of regional security frameworks that rely on outside powers.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has likewise emphasized that the time for words is over. “Merely talking is no longer sufficient; action is needed,” a senior spokesman said, highlighting Tehran’s expectation that the summit produce tangible steps.
Regional analysts see the Doha gathering as a potential turning point, with several Islamic countries reconsidering reliance on U.S. security guarantees in the wake of Washington’s muted reaction. While the White House expressed “concern,” it simultaneously suggested the elimination of Hamas leaders could open “an opportunity for peace”—a stance that has further fueled anger across the region.
The extraordinary summit is expected to conclude with a joint resolution condemning Israel’s aggression, urging accountability under international law, and calling for stronger political, economic, and security coordination among Islamic states.
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