Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani described Iran’s attacks on Gulf states as a “dangerous miscalculation”, warning of an escalation of risks that could destabilize the region and send shock waves through the global economy.
Then spoke to the media for the first time Qatar Under repeated missile and drone attacks, the prime minister said the country was going through what he called a “very difficult period” but praised the professionalism of its defense and security forces.
For a man who has intervened in some of the world’s most complex crises, I was struck by how angry he was about Iran’s actions.
“It’s a huge sense of betrayal,” he told me. “Just an hour after the war started, Qatar and other Gulf countries were attacked. We have made it clear that we will not participate in any wars against our neighbors.”
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Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told Sky News that Qatar had been betrayed. Image: Sky
For a country that has long kept diplomatic channels open with Tehran — even in its most volatile moments — the tone is striking. Qatar has traditionally positioned itself as a global mediator, able to speak for all. Relations with Tehran have now deteriorated.
“All the attacks on the Gulf countries – we never expected this from our neighbours,” he said. “We have always tried to maintain good relations with Iran, but the justifications and pretexts they are using have been completely rejected.”
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Even as he condemned the strikes, the prime minister repeatedly stressed that military escalation would only deepen the crisis – and that the onus was on all parties to pull back.
“We will try to continue the escalation,” he said. “They are our neighbors – this is our destiny.”
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani urged escalation from all sides. Image: Sky
His message was not only directed at Tehran. He called on the United States to reduce tensions, warning of the risk of the entire region sliding into war.
He argued that diplomacy was the only viable way out of the crisis.
“The miscalculation by the Iranians to attack the Gulf countries has destroyed everything,” he said, but now insisted the North should renew talks.
He pushed back against claims that Iran’s strikes were aimed at military targets.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani accused Iran of “miscalculation”. Image: Sky
International airports, water utilities and gas infrastructure are at the crossroads of Tehran.
“Twenty-five percent of attacks target civilian facilities. What does this have to do with war? What do they want to achieve?”
Again and again, Prime Ministers returned the global claim – and what happens in the Gulf does not stay in the Gulf. Qatar supplies roughly 20 percent of the world’s gas and is one of the planet’s biggest fertilizer producers — meaning any sustained disruption would affect markets, food supplies and people around the world.
Although the Gulf states insist it is not their fight, they are an integral part of it.
And that is perhaps the central danger of the moment – a war that began between the United States, Israel and Iran is now dragging on countries that want no part of it, but find themselves increasingly on its front lines.
