( CNN ) -- Israel 's monthlong assault on the Palestinians has taken a heavy toll , with some 2,000 Palestinians killed and 10,000 more wounded . Most of these victims were civilians and many of them children , representing just the latest bloody chapter in a tragic history . During the long decades of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict , the international community has not fully met or addressed legitimate Palestinian aspirations . Nowhere is that better illustrated than in Gaza . Chronically short of food , water and electricity , and cut off from the outside world by closed borders and blockades , the Palestinians in Gaza are desperate . As an individual who has fought tirelessly for human rights , I can not ignore their plight , and as a fellow Arab , I can not ignore this wanton denial of Palestinian rights . The people of Gaza need three things . First , they need a peace agreement that ends the hostilities and lifts an Israeli siege that has been in place since 2007 and has turned Gaza into what some journalists have called `` an open-air jail . '' Second , the Palestinians in Gaza need humanitarian aid and funding for development , so they can rebuild their shattered lives , their bombed-out neighborhoods and their fractured communities . And finally , Palestinians everywhere need a comprehensive agreement that will end the occupation and establish two states for two peoples , allowing Israelis and Palestinians to live side by side in peace and security . Until a two state solution becomes a reality , the fighting and bloodshed will almost certainly continue . As Qatar has said many times , peace must be achieved through negotiations , with all sides in the conflict represented . Qatar has already provided humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza and we have pledged to assist with rebuilding efforts once hostilities have ended . But we are also working behind the scenes to facilitate the kind of dialogue that can lead to a lasting peace . Ultimately , Qatar wants to help the Palestinians realize their self-determination by establishing a secure Palestinian state . Qatar makes no claim to being a major player on the global stage . But beginning in the mid-1990s , our government embraced an open door foreign policy focused on relationship-building and conflict mediation that has benefited both Qatar and the global community . This open door policy has allowed Qatar to serve as a mediator for conversation , cooperation , and the advancement of peace . With our doors wide open , our capital , Doha , has increasingly become the center of a vibrant , new multicultural nation , with the creation of a knowledge-based economy enshrined as one of the key goals of our 2030 national vision . It is precisely because we are impartial that we are often approached to mediate and create platforms for dialogue between different factions . In 2008 , for example , we were able to broker a peace agreement between the various factions battling for supremacy in southern Lebanon . Later , we played a similar role in Darfur . Over the years we have hosted an Israeli Trade Mission and kept our door open to Western think tanks like the Brookings Institution . More recently , because of our open door policy , we were able to help negotiate the exchange of an American soldier for five Taliban prisoners . And today we are helping facilitate communication between the United States , the United Nations , our Arab neighbors , Israel and Hamas as the various parties struggle to find a peaceful solution to the violence in Gaza . In each instance , we feel we have been on the right side of history . But more important , we believe that we have been on the right side of justice , human rights and human dignity . All these qualities and attributes are on trial in Gaza today , and once again , history will judge our actions . Qatar stands ready to help reconcile differences and advance the prospects for peace . We stand ready to play our part in advancing dialogue and achieving solutions to the seemingly intractable problems confronting the people of the Middle East . Some of these problems , like Gaza , have been years or even decades in the making . But that does not mean they can not be solved . The bleeding , the suffering and the dying must be stopped . In Qatar , we will always keep an open door to peace .
Khalid Al-Attiya : Isolated , short of food and water , Palestinians in Gaza are desperate . He says Gazans need peace pact , humanitarian aid and development funding . Al-Attiya : They need an agreement for two states for two peoples , and Qatar can help . He says Qatar has helped in tough negotiations before and stands ready to help here .