The Hague: Qatar participated in the 105th session of the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), held in The Hague.
Ambassador of Qatar to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Representative of Qatar to the OPCW H E Dr. Mutlaq bin Majed Al Qahtani headed Qatar’s delegation and the session.
Delivering Qatar’s speech, His Excellency said that the OPCW and its Executive Council are an important tool and must be effective in achieving international peace and security. Therefore, the organization and its Director-General have a great responsibility of carrying out their main role in monitoring and ensuring that states implement their obligations in accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention and the relevant conventions and resolutions of the Organization.
He voiced Qatar’s strong condemnation of the use of chemical substances and weapons by any party, states or non-state actors, under any circumstances, affirming Qatar’s support for the efforts of the organization and its investigation mechanisms in continuing their work for a world free of the chemical threat.
Al Qahtani pointed out that at a time when the members of the organization are meeting to work together for a world free of chemical weapons, Israel is waging a brutal war on Gaza in flagrant violation of international law and is using prohibited materials in its aggression against the defenseless Palestinian people, including its use of chemical materials prohibited by the Chemical Weapons Convention and other relevant conventions.
Israel’s failure to join the Chemical Weapons Convention does not mean that it has the right to violate the principles and rules of international law that prohibit the use of this type of weapons, he stressed.
Al Qahtani affirmed Qatar’s support Palestine’s request submitted to the organization’s secretariat to investigate Israel’s use or threats of use of chemical weapons and other prohibited materials under international disarmament conventions and international law.
He stressed that the organization, the Executive Council, and the Director-General must have a more effective role in stopping the cycle of violence and destruction caused by the Israeli arsenal against the Palestinian people.
