Qatar and Pakistan called state sponsors of terrorism at UN
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Pakistan faced strong criticism at the United Nations after Hillel Neuer, a human rights lawyer and executive director of UN Watch, accused the country of being “another state sponsor of terrorism.”
The confrontation occurred during a meeting focused on recent Israeli airstrikes on Qatar.
Pakistan had condemned Israel’s attacks, stating, “We also strongly condemn Israel's unlawful and heinous bombing in Qatar.”
In response, Neuer accused Qatar of sheltering terrorists and being a “state sponsor of terror” for hosting Hamas officials. He sharply criticised the Qatari delegation, questioning why they were harbouring terrorists in their capital—terrorists who, according to him, were still holding hostages, torturing them, and rejecting peace deals—if they did not want targeted bombings against them.
Neuer also questioned why terrorists were provided luxury accommodations in Doha, where they allegedly planned attacks. He asked why Qatar supported Hamas’ takeover of Gaza in 2007 and accused the country of acting “as a mediator by day, and a terror sponsor by night.” He further stated that Qatar should be recorded as a state sponsor of terror, noting that the Gulf states had made the same claim in 2017 when they suspended ties with Qatar.
He criticised UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for what he described as hypocrisy, recalling Guterres’s statement that “justice had been done to such a mastermind of international terrorism” in reference to the killing of Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan, and contrasting it with Guterres’s condemnation of Israel’s actions in Qatar.
When a Pakistani diplomat attempted to interrupt Neuer, stating, “We reject casting unfounded accusations and allegations,” the UNHRC chair intervened. He allowed Neuer four seconds to finish his remarks, during which Neuer concluded, “Mr President, Pakistan is another state sponsor of terror,” leaving the Pakistani delegate stunned.
The tensions came after Israel claimed it had targeted Hamas leaders in Doha, although the group reported its top officials survived. Six people were killed in the airstrike: five Hamas members and one Qatari security officer in his 20s.