Hamas officials have left the Qatari capital Doha, but the Palestinian group’s office in the Gulf country has not yet been closed down, a Qatari foreign ministry spokesman said.
“The leaders of Hamas that are within the negotiating team are now not in Doha, and as you know, they move between different capitals,” Majed al-Ansari told reporters.
However, the office remains open, he said.
“The decision to close down the office permanently is a decision that you will hear about from us directly,” he said, reacting to reports that Hamas had to shutter its office Doha under pressure from the US.
The office was created for the sake of mediation, and when there is no mediation the office will have no function, al-Ansari added.
Qatar spent months mediating indirect negotiations in the Gaza war between Hamas and Israel. At the beginning of November, however, the emirate said it had suspended its efforts due to a lack of prospects of success.
