Qatar was key in the dialogue for a ceasefire. The arrival of humanitarian aid and the release of hostages is delayed.
Prime Minister Al Thani said there was "a misuse of this mediation for narrow political interests." Turkish Prime Minister Fidan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of wanting to drag the Middle East into war "to remain in power." The Gulf country recently reacted angrily to a statement by a US Democratic representative calling on it to put pressure on Hamas, calling it 'unconstructive' and 'an attack on Qatar's role.' Tehran spoke with Washington "before and after" the unprecedented attack. Iran assures this Thursday, April 18, that it is not seeking "an escalation of violence in the Mideast." The head of Iranian diplomacy indicated that his country had sent several "messages" to the U.S. to ensure that Iran "does not seek an expansion of tensions" in the Mideast with Israel. "What can increase tensions in the region is the behavior of the Zionist regime," said Hossein Ami-Abdollahian, upon his arrival in New York on the night of Wednesday to Thursday for a meeting of the UN Security Council. "We have clearly told the Americans that the decision to respond to the Israeli regime," following the attack attributed to Israel against the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1, was "definitive," the minister said. The Iranian foreign minister planned to meet with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other foreign ministers on the sidelines of a UN meeting.