DOHA - The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has announced that member countries will activate a joint defence mechanism. The decision came after an Israeli air strike on the Hamas leadership's residence in the Qatari capital Doha. The move is intended to strengthen regional security and send a signal of Arab unity in the face of growing threats.
According to an official statement, the Gulf leaders agreed that Joint Defence Council will convene an emergency meeting in Doha. Before that, a meeting will be held Supreme Military Commissionsto assess the level of defence preparedness of individual Member States. The aim is to analyse the sources of threats in the context of Israeli aggression against Qatar and to issue instructions Joint Military Commandto immediately launch collective defence mechanisms and strengthen deterrence capabilities in the Gulf region.
Tensions escalated after On 9 September, the Israeli army carried out a strike on representatives of the Palestinian Hamas movement in Doha. According to Hamas itself, the attack claimed six victims, including the son of a prominent Gaza leader Khalil al-Hajji and a member of the Qatari security forces. Reports of the deaths of senior Hamas members have not yet been confirmed by independent sources.
The reaction of the Arab world was not long in coming. Arab League a Organisation of Islamic Cooperation held an emergency summit, whose final declaration expressed full support for Qatar and confirmed that Arab and Muslim countries stand with it in its response to the Israeli attack. The summit stressed the need for coordinated action to ensure the stability and security of the entire region.
The activation of the GCC common defence mechanism is seen as a historically significant step. In practice, it may mean a closer military cooperation between the Gulf States, intelligence sharing, joint exercises and the deployment of defensive assets. These developments also show that the tensions between Israel and the Arab countries go beyond Gaza and the West Bank and directly affect states that have so far acted more as mediators.
Experts warn that the crisis could fundamentally affect the geopolitical situation not only in the Middle East, but also in the wider international context. The Persian Gulf is a key region for the world's energy supply and any threat to its security immediately resonates in global markets.
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