عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Qatar, Iran Discuss Bilateral Ties, Regional Developments

Meeting between the Iranian President and Qatari Foreign Minister in Tehran on Thursday, January 27, 2022. (Iranian presidency)
Meeting between the Iranian President and Qatari Foreign Minister in Tehran on Thursday, January 27, 2022. (Iranian presidency)
    London, Tehran - Asharq Al-Awsat
TT
TT

Qatar, Iran Discuss Bilateral Ties, Regional Developments

Meeting between the Iranian President and Qatari Foreign Minister in Tehran on Thursday, January 27, 2022. (Iranian presidency)
Meeting between the Iranian President and Qatari Foreign Minister in Tehran on Thursday, January 27, 2022. (Iranian presidency)

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani held talks on Thursday with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in Tehran, ahead of talks with President Ebrahim Raisi.

Discussions tackled bilateral ties and political developments in the region.

Amirabdollahian met with Qatar’s ruling emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Sheikh Mohammed during his visit to Doha on Jan. 11.

On Tuesday, Al Thani held talks with Iran’s FM over the phone, Iranian Ambassador to Qatar Hamid Reza Dehghani announced on Twitter.

According to a Foreign Ministry statement, the ministers discussed bilateral and regional issues, including Afghanistan and Yemen, without referring to the nuclear talks.

Al Thani said in a tweet that he he met with his Iranian counterpart and held fruitful discussions on the latest regional developments.

“I emphasize the constants of Qatar’s foreign policy, based on good neighborliness and constructive dialogue, to foster political dialogue aimed at achieving sustainable regional stability,” he added.

Raisi underscored the importance of “deepening ties between regional countries” in a meeting with Sheikh Mohammed, who invited the president to attend Gas Exporting Countries Forum summit in February in Doha.

Al Thani’s visit comes after Amirabdollahian on Monday said Tehran is ready to consider direct talks with Washington if it feels it can get a “good nuclear deal.”

However, Iran’s state news agency IRNA said the visit was not intended to help set up direct talks with Washington.

“Although Doha and Tehran are experiencing good and close relations, this visit ... has fueled some misconceptions. Some are fabricating it to facilitate direct talks with the United States,” IRNA said, Reuters reported.

The US and Iran have held eight rounds of indirect talks in Vienna since April aimed at reinstating the 2015 pact that lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program.

After then-US President Donald Trump quit the nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions, Iran gradually started violating the pact’s nuclear curbs.

Significant gaps remain about the speed and scope of returning to the deal, including Iran’s demand for a US guarantee of no further punitive steps, and how and when to restore curbs on Iran’s atomic work.

Sheikh Tamim will hold talks with US President Joe Biden on Jan. 31 including on efforts to salvage the pact.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

UN Report: 40% of War-Related Deaths are Women, and 30% are Children

The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
TT
TT

UN Report: 40% of War-Related Deaths are Women, and 30% are Children

The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)

While the proportion of women killed in armed conflicts doubled last year compared to 2022, the situation will not be any better in 2024, according to the annual report by the Office of UN Secretary-General on the protection of civilians in war contexts.
The report, released a few days ago, paints a very bleak picture of what women have suffered in armed conflicts in 2023.
It said 40% of civilians killed in armed conflict in 2023 were women, twice as many as in 2022. The number of children who lost their lives (30%) also tripled.
The report also highlights an exponential increase in civilian casualties, with at least 33,443 non-combatants killed in 2023, a 73% rise from the previous year.
Gaza City...70% of Recorded Deaths
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023, the report said.
Policy Specialist on Peace and Security at UN Women, Pablo Castillo said the increase in the proportion of women who died in armed conflict occurred “in all wars.”
“The reason [for this trend] is the growing disregard for international law and humanitarian standards amid a backdrop of both cold and hot wars between superpowers, along with a general geopolitical climate that challenges multilateralism,” said Castillo. “Additionally, there is a discernible trend of attacking anything that can be identified as feminism.”
UN Women contributed to reports on women, peace, and security and which highlighted the alarming figures regarding female mortality in conflict zones.
“The world is caught in a frightening spiral of conflict, instability and violence. In 2023, more than 170 armed conflicts were recorded, and approximately 612 million women and girls lived within 50 km of these conflicts, 150% more than just a decade ago,” stated the UN report on women, peace and security.
Another “alarming” finding revealed by the study is the 50% increase in cases of sexual assault in conflict zones, along with a 35% rise in serious rape cases involving girls in these countries.
This is emphasized by Cristina Sanchez, a law professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid and an expert on the intersection of war and gender.
“These are not random acts; sexual violence is a targeted and effective weapon of war. It not only serves to displace populations from their homes but also functions as a bargaining chip, with women being sold among terrorist groups as a means of financing,” she said.
The UN describes this situation as “a war on women,” noting that they are affected in numerous ways beyond death and rape.
For instance, access to healthcare is becoming increasingly restricted.
Every day, 500 women and girls in conflict-affected countries die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth.
“An estimated 52,000 pregnant women have been caught in the war, with an estimated 180 deliveries every day, most of them without access to anesthetics for cesarean sections and without water, sanitation, nutrition or postpartum care,” stated the UN report.
“A pregnant patient from a rural area had to wait two days to get the money she needed to receive care,” said Maria Fix, head of the Doctors Without Borders team in South Darfur, Sudan.
“When she finally reached a health center, they had no medicines, so she returned home. After three days, her condition worsened, but she again had to wait five hours to be transferred. She was in a coma when she reached us. She died of a preventable infection,” she added.
Absence of International Awareness
For the first time, the report mentioned a direct criticism to the so-called “basic public awareness about these injustices.”
The report also criticized the lack of media coverage: although reports on wars increased sixfold between 2013 and 2023, only 5% focused on women’s experiences.
“In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war has been denounced for decades. And nothing happens. This also sends a message of impunity,” said Sanchez.
In that country, the UN reported over 123,000 cases of gender violence in 2023, a 300% increase over three years, which has not been accompanied by a rise in convictions.
The neglect is also evident in the reduced funding for organizations focused on gender equality and specific programs aimed at mitigating the impact of war on women, the report showed.
Women are frequently excluded from peace negotiations, “despite the fact that it is known that increased female participation leads to more robust and lasting agreements,” said Castillo.
Instead of progress, attacks against women’s rights activists have intensified. “Anti-gender and anti-feminist movements are well-organized and have at their disposal considerable financial resources,” said the report.
In several countries, including Iraq, Libya, and Yemen, local or national authorities have even banned the term “gender” and restricted or persecuted activities advocating for equality.
In Afghanistan, “the oppression of Afghan women is severe,” the report said.
Girls over the age of 12 have been denied the right to education for three years, among various other restrictions that have led the UN to classify the situation as gender apartheid.