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GCC Slams Israel’s Attack on Khan Younis, Calling it a War Crime

Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
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GCC Slams Israel’s Attack on Khan Younis, Calling it a War Crime

Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)

Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi strongly condemned on Tuesday the “brutal massacre carried out by the Israeli forces against innocent Palestinian refugees in Khan Younis in Gaza.”

He stressed that these continuous and brutal attacks perpetrated by the Israeli forces against unarmed civilians in Gaza and the rest of the Palestinian territories “can only be described as deliberate war crimes, revealing a blatant and systematic criminal approach that reflects an utter disregard for international and humanitarian laws and treaties.”

He added that these acts are “blatant contempt for all legal, ethical, and humanitarian values,” the GCC said in a statement.

Albudaiwi called on the international community “to take immediate and urgent action to put an end to these heinous crimes, take decisive measures to cease fire immediately, subject the Israeli forces to accountability for their crimes against humanity, and hold the Israeli government responsible for its racist and barbaric policies against the defenseless Palestinians.”

An Israeli strike hit a crowded Palestinian tent camp early Tuesday in Gaza, killing at least 19 people and wounding 60, Palestinian officials said.

The overnight strike occurred in Mawasi, a sprawl of crowded tent camps along the Gaza coast that Israel designated as a humanitarian zone for hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians to seek shelter from the nearly year-old Israel-Hamas war.

The Muslim World League (MWL) also strongly condemned “the horrific massacres perpetrated by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian people.”

It denounced the continued targeting of unarmed displaced Palestinians in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, located in a designated “safe zone” in the southern Gaza Strip.

In a statement, MWL Secretary General Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa expressed his deepest concern over the Israeli government's “blatant violation of all international and humanitarian resolutions, laws, and norms.”

“This ongoing humanitarian catastrophe, unfolding before the eyes of the world, is a direct challenge to the international community's calls for the protection of innocent lives,” he added.

Sheikh Al-Issa emphasized that “there is no justification for this barbarism and humanitarian tragedy other than defiance, arrogance, and revenge against innocent lives. This escalation only serves to complicate the Palestinian issue and hinder the pursuit of peace in the region.”

The MWL called upon the international community “to take urgent action to halt these ongoing massacres, confront the systematic killing, and stop the humanitarian catastrophe facing the Palestinian people.”

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Gulf

Jeddah Summit Highlights Saudi Push for Gulf Coordination

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, holds talks with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Jeddah on Tuesday. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, holds talks with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Jeddah on Tuesday. (SPA)
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Jeddah Summit Highlights Saudi Push for Gulf Coordination

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, holds talks with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Jeddah on Tuesday. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, holds talks with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Jeddah on Tuesday. (SPA)

Observers said Saudi Arabia’s hosting of a consultative meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Jeddah on Tuesday underscores a push by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to bolster joint Gulf work, contain the fallout of the current security and economic crisis, and ensure that solutions to the conflict ensure the interests of the GCC.

Recent developments and their unprecedented repercussions have exposed a major shift in the regional security order, underscoring the need for stronger Gulf cooperation and a more integrated crisis-response strategy.

Containing fallout

Informed sources said Saudi Arabia, alongside fellow Gulf states, has led diplomatic efforts to avoid escalation in the region.

GCC countries have repeatedly stressed their territories will not be used to launch attacks against Iran, seeking to prevent a wider conflict and its economic and security consequences.

Despite this, Iran and allied militias have expanded the conflict through unjustified attacks on GCC states.

Political analyst Munif Al-Harbi told Asharq Al-Awsat that Saudi Arabia has condemned Iranian attacks targeting the Kingdom, GCC states, and several Arab and Islamic countries, warning of escalation, breaches of international law, and threats to regional stability.

He said Riyadh considers GCC security indivisible, with any attack on one member treated as an attack on all, underscoring the need to protect shared interests.

Al-Harbi said the crisis has reinforced the urgency of deeper Gulf integration and stronger defense coordination. He said GCC states have shown a strong ability to intercept most missile and drone attacks, reflecting the resilience of their defense systems.

He added that economic and logistical coordination has also intensified, with Saudi Arabia helping stabilize global markets by maintaining oil exports.

Fragile ceasefire

Political analyst Khaled Al-Habbas agreed, saying the summit came at a sensitive moment shaped by stalled negotiations and a fragile ceasefire.

He underscored the consistent GCC stance since the start of the war, including support for the Pakistani mediation and efforts to ensure a Gulf voice at the negotiating table, even without direct participation, given the damage Gulf states have sustained from the Iranian attacks, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Al-Habbas said the summit is expected to reaffirm Gulf unity, condemn Iranian attacks, and back ongoing mediation efforts.

He said it would likely stress reopening the Strait of Hormuz in line with international law, reject any unilateral Iranian arrangements, and highlight risks linked to Iran’s nuclear and missile programs and its regional proxies, as well as continued attacks on some Gulf states even after the ceasefire.

Both analysts said the summit will stress tighter coordination across defense, logistics, and supply chains, which they said has helped limit the war’s impact on GCC states.

The summit is also expected to back regional and international efforts toward a political settlement addressing all aspects of the conflict and Gulf concerns over Iran’s conduct.

Any deal reached must reflect those concerns and be backed by firm international guarantees.

Gulf

Gulf Maritime Integration Needed to Protect Hormuz, Counter Strategic Blackmail

A satellite image shows small boats north of the Strait of Hormuz. (Reuters)
A satellite image shows small boats north of the Strait of Hormuz. (Reuters)
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Gulf Maritime Integration Needed to Protect Hormuz, Counter Strategic Blackmail

A satellite image shows small boats north of the Strait of Hormuz. (Reuters)
A satellite image shows small boats north of the Strait of Hormuz. (Reuters)

The Strait of Hormuz has shifted, amid the current crisis, from a vital shipping lane into a strategic bargaining chip, anchored in Iran’s ability to keep passage uncertain, legally open, yet militarily threatened, politically conditioned, and economically sensitive.

A report by the Gulf Research Center, published on Tuesday, said Gulf states are the most exposed to the fallout from using Hormuz as leverage.

It said the strait’s impact goes beyond energy exports, extending to port security, supply chains, insurance, investment, the reputation of the economic environment, and the continuity of trade flows.

The report, prepared by retired Naval Admiral Abdullah Jaber AlZaidi, senior adviser for defense and security studies at the center, said Gulf states must not only protect the waterway but also reduce their vulnerability to strategic blackmail.

That requires stronger maritime early warning, a more integrated maritime picture, higher readiness to protect ports and infrastructure, alternative supply chain plans, and closer coordination with international partners, without turning the region into an open arena for escalation.

Iran’s approach, the report said, rarely reaches full closure. Instead, it relies on selective restrictions or threats, particularly against ships it views as tied to logistical support for US bases or as subject to maritime pressure. This gives Tehran room to maneuver, allowing it to calibrate between escalation and de-escalation.

The United States, by contrast, is using naval and air deployments as deterrence and counter-pressure, seeking to make any disruption of Hormuz a high-cost option for Iran. The aim is to curb escalation and reassure allies and markets that freedom of navigation will not be held hostage by Iran.

The report warned that the crisis is governed by a fragile balance. Iran is betting on raising the cost of passage without exhausting the Hormuz card, while the United States is betting on stronger deterrence without tipping into open conflict. Gulf states remain the most affected, as Hormuz is no longer just a navigation issue, but a broad national security concern spanning energy, ports, insurance, investment, supply chains, and regional stability.

Maritime pressure and the shadow fleet

The report said Iran’s use of Hormuz cannot be separated from wider maritime and economic pressure imposed on it. This goes beyond direct restrictions on Iranian ports to targeting shipping networks, insurance, intermediaries, and tankers that help Tehran bypass sanctions and market oil and petroleum products outside official channels.

Recent US measures against shipping firms and tankers linked to Iranian oil are not just financial sanctions, the report said, but part of dismantling Iran’s ability to sustain unofficial maritime trade.

Strategic ambiguity

Iran’s shifting statements on the strait reflect a deliberate strategy of ambiguity, the report said. The messaging has moved from allowing commercial transit, to linking passage, to de-escalation, to tougher positions on monitoring or restricting some vessels.

This is not an inconsistency, but an effort to keep the strait in a gray zone.

At its core, the strait remains legally open, but militarily threatened and subject to political and security conditions. That alone is enough to unsettle shipping firms, insurers, and vessel owners, who base decisions on worst-case risks, not reassuring statements.

The report said Iran adds a more sensitive layer by claiming some transiting ships provide logistical support for US bases in the Gulf, shifting from the language of disruption to a claim of the right to monitor what it sees as threats to its sovereignty.

Iran’s strategy reflects an awareness of its limits in conventional naval operations, offset by effective tools of disruption, confusion, and gray-zone pressure, the report said. These include direct military tools, hybrid gray-zone and cyber tools, and psychological and information warfare.

The Strait of Hormuz is narrow, the report said, and any incident could escalate quickly, whether a ship refusing inspection or a mine hitting the wrong target. Such events could shift the dynamic from bargaining to confrontation, stripping Iran of control over escalation and turning leverage into liability.

Impact on Gulf security

Gulf states remain the most exposed to the fallout, the report said, as Hormuz affects not only energy exports but also ports, supply chains, insurance, investment, the business environment, and trade flows.

Iran’s use of the strait puts Gulf states in a delicate position, the report noted, adding that they need to protect freedom of navigation, but do not want the strait to become an open confrontation zone.

It also mentioned that Gulf states need international deterrence, but know that any broad escalation would hit them directly, economically, and in security terms.

The report said Gulf states must go beyond protecting the passage and work to reduce their vulnerability to strategic blackmail.

This requires stronger maritime early warning, better integration of maritime awareness, higher readiness to protect ports and infrastructure, alternative supply chain planning, and tighter coordination with international partners, without turning the region into an open theater of escalation.

Gulf

Bahrain Sentences Five to Life for Plotting Terrorist Acts with Iran

Tuesday's sentences come a day after Bahrain revoked the citizenship of 69 people who "supported hostile Iranian acts". (BNA)
Tuesday's sentences come a day after Bahrain revoked the citizenship of 69 people who "supported hostile Iranian acts". (BNA)
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Bahrain Sentences Five to Life for Plotting Terrorist Acts with Iran

Tuesday's sentences come a day after Bahrain revoked the citizenship of 69 people who "supported hostile Iranian acts". (BNA)
Tuesday's sentences come a day after Bahrain revoked the citizenship of 69 people who "supported hostile Iranian acts". (BNA)

A Bahrain court sentenced five people to life in prison on Tuesday for plotting "terrorist and hostile acts" with Iran, which bombarded the Gulf kingdom during the Middle East war.

Another 25 people were jailed for up to 10 years for sharing images of Iranian attacks and expressing support for them, the public prosecution said.

The High Criminal Court sentenced two Afghans and three Bahrainis to life for colluding with Iran's Revolutionary Guards to monitor and photograph vital facilities.

A fourth Bahraini was acquitted, the public prosecution said, adding that it may appeal the verdict.

"The Public Prosecution affirms that the crime of communicating with hostile foreign entities against the Kingdom of Bahrain is considered one of the most serious crimes affecting national security," the statement said.

The other 25 were jailed for "supporting and endorsing" the attacks and filming and sharing prohibited images, a separate statement said.

Tuesday's sentences come a day after Bahrain revoked the citizenship of 69 people who "supported hostile Iranian acts".