President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan flew to Qatar on Monday to attend an extraordinary summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League in the wake of Israel’s strike in Doha last week. The president is accompanied by first lady Emine Erdoğan, intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalın, Presidential Communications Director Burhanettin Duran, his foreign policy and security chief adviser Akif Çağatay Kılıç, as well as Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Deputy Chair Halit Yerebakan.
He is expected to make a speech at the summit later on Monday.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan had arrived earlier to participate in a preparatory meeting for the summit and joined his counterparts at the meeting on Sunday. On Monday, Fidan held bilateral talks with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani.
The summit called by Qatar seeks to pile pressure on Israel, which has been facing mounting calls to end the war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Hamas says top officials survived last week's airstrike in Doha that killed six people and triggered a wave of criticism, including from U.S. President Donald Trump.
A draft final statement of the summit, seen by AFP, warned that "brutal Israeli aggression" put efforts to normalize relations between Israel and Arab states at risk.
It "threatens all that has been achieved on the path toward establishing normal relations with Israel, including existing and future agreements," the draft added.
Israel and its main backer, the U.S., have been trying to extend the Abraham Accords that established ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in 2020.
Last week's attack and Israel's "genocide (and) ethnic cleansing (in Gaza) ... undermines the prospects of achieving peace and peaceful coexistence in the region," the draft statement said.
"The time has come for the international community to stop using double standards and to punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed," Qatari Premier Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told a preparatory meeting at the weekend.
Alongside Egypt and the U.S., Qatar has led mediation efforts between Israel and Hamas.
