Foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari stated on X, "Qatar firmly rejects the inflammatory statements...which fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility.” 

Al-Ansari criticized Netanyahu’s framing of the war on Gaza as a defence of “civilization,” calling the language a dangerous evocation of historic regimes that used “false slogans to justify crimes against innocent civilians.”

He noted that since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, Qatar has worked in coordination with international partners to halt the violence, protect civilians, and secure the release of captives.

The Israeli prime minister’s rhetoric, he argued, undermines those efforts and shifts blame amid growing humanitarian devastation.

“The Palestinian people in Gaza are enduring one of the worst humanitarian disasters of the modern era—from suffocating siege and systematic starvation, to denial of medicine and shelter, to the weaponization of humanitarian aid for political pressure and blackmail. Is this the ‘civilization’ that is being promoted?” he asked.

Al-Ansari’s comments came in response to a statement issued by Netanyahu’s office accusing Qatar of “manipulating public opinion with its double talk” and calling on Doha to “decide whether it stands with civilization or with the barbarism of Hamas.”

The statement drew additional scrutiny as it coincided with a brewing scandal in Israel.

According to Yedioth Ahronoth, two aides to Netanyahu were recently arrested over allegations they promoted Qatari interests during and before the war in Gaza, a controversy local media has dubbed “QatarGate.”

Qatar, Egypt, and the United States brokered a three-phase ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the first phase of which went into effect on 19 January.

However, on 18 March, Israel unilaterally ended the ceasefire and resumed its genocide in Gaza.

Since then, the renewed bombardment has killed or wounded more than 160,000 Palestinians.

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