The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Tuesday strongly condemned the Israeli military aggression against Qatar on September 9. The OIC said, Israel violated the international law and the UN Charter, and constituted a dangerous escalation, threatening human rights in the region.
“This unjustifiable and unprovoked attack constitutes a dangerous escalation, threatening the human rights, and an attack on the sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity of the State of Qatar, under the pretext of countering terrorism,” the statement added.
The OIC expressed solidarity with Qatar and supported “all steps it may take to protect its security and sovereignty in accordance with the UN Charter.”
Pakistan’s ambassador Bilal Ahmad, whose country was among those that led the call for the urgent debate, warned that “this unjustifiable and unprovoked attack constitutes a dangerous escalation”.
Speaking on behalf of the OIC during an urgent debate at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday, Ahmad said the group welcomed the session and thanked Qatar’s Minister of State for International Cooperation Maryam bint Ali bin Nasser Al Misnad for her address.
“The OIC condemns in the strongest terms the Israeli aggression against Qatar on September 9, 2025 in blatant violation of international law and the UN Charter,” he added.
He said the attack undermined the mediation process that Qatar has hosted with regional and international partners to address the humanitarian crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly Gaza.
He called on the international community to “force Israel to stop its dangerous and ongoing attacks in the region” and urged the UN Human Rights Council to ensure accountability for what it described as Israel’s “serial violations of international law.”
The statement added that mediation initiatives by Qatar and other countries offered a basis for “a just and lasting regional peace with equal rights and dignity for all peoples in the region, especially the people under occupation in Palestine.”
Meanwhile, the United Nations and a long line of countries also denounced Israel’s attack on Qatar last week, decrying a “dangerous escalation” and demanding “accountability”.
That strike “was a shocking breach of international law”, UN rights chief Volker Turk said during an urgent debate at the UN Human Rights Council about the strike.
Denouncing the attack as “an assault on regional peace and stability”, he urged “accountability for unlawful killings”. His words were echoed by Qatar and dozens of country representatives who took the floor during the three-hour debate.
Qatari International Cooperation Minister Maryam bint Ali bin Nasser Al-Misnad slammed Israel’s “treacherous attack” and demanded that the international community “take practical steps to hold the aggressors accountable and prevent their impunity”.
“This attack was not an isolated incident, but rather was part of a broader campaign aimed at distorting Qatar’s role and obstructing its diplomatic efforts,” she said.
The council announced on Monday that it would convene the 10th urgent debate since its creation in 2006 following two official requests from members of the OIC and of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Neither Israel nor its main ally the United States, which both disengaged from the council earlier this year, was present for the urgent debate.
But Israel’s ambassador in Geneva Daniel Meron lambasted the meeting from the sidelines. “This marks yet another shameful chapter in the Human Rights Council’s ongoing abuse,” he told journalists.
He accused the council of “serving as a platform for anti-Israel propaganda, while ignoring the brutal realities on the ground and the atrocities committed by Hamas”. There was little support for Israel’s position during the debate.
European Union ambassador Deike Potzel stressed the bloc’s “principled stance against terrorism in all its forms”, while underlining its “support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar” and calling “on Israel to respect international law”. “We urge all parties to refrain from any actions that jeopardise mediation channels and regional stability,” she said.
China’s ambassador Chen Xu said his country “firmly rejects and categorically condemns” the September 9 attack, which he charged was “a deliberate attempt to derail the negotiation process”. Some of the harshest criticism came from South Africa, which has brought a case against Israel before the International Court of Justice, accusing it of committing genocide in Gaza.
The attack “strikes against the very heart of mediation processes”,ambassador Mxolisi Nkosi told the council, adding that it “demonstrates that Israel does not want to end its genocidal war against the Palestinian people”. “It is time for the international community to demonstrate through practical countermeasures that Israel does not enjoy some form of special immunity from accountability.”
