Weeks of brutal Israeli strikes on the heavily-populated Gaza strip have seen a number of political actors come forward to present a cease-fire plan . The deadlock , however , seems to be between Egypt and Qatar -- both of whom have considerable leverage over Hamas , the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated group that has ruled Gaza since 2007 . The truth is that due to political bias on each side , neither country is fit to be an exclusive mediator in this situation . But only one of these two states holds undeniable geographic and political advantages : Egypt is the only Arab state that borders Gaza , meaning that -- for better or worse -- it is the strip 's only access point to the outside world . Egypt is also the only one of the two that has a direct diplomatic channel with the Israelis , which is essential to implement any deal . During the Muslim Brotherhood 's rule in Cairo , Qatar offered Egypt $ 8 billion in grants and loans , a strategy that may have been well meant , but that ultimately backfired . Because the Muslim Brotherhood felt Qatar was a reliable source of funding , it did n't feel the need to even negotiate a political compromise and economic reform with other factions of Egypt 's political and civil society , which was a condition set by western lenders to extend a $ 4.8 billion loan . This expedited the downfall of the group . The truth is that Qatar 's overall strategy with the Muslim Brotherhood has failed miserably : It resulted in the alienation of the Brotherhood in Egypt -- so much so that the group was ousted from power in a popularly-backed military coup , and meant that many Egyptians were indifferent to the bloody massacre of the group 's members that followed . Qatari support for Muslim Brotherhood affiliates elsewhere in the region , such as Libya , Jordan , and Tunisia , has also backfired resulting in them being sidelined from power . All of this adds to quite an unfortunate year for the Gulf emirate . Qatar 's continuous financial and media support for the Muslim Brotherhood through the once-popular Al Jazeera Arabic , the 24-hour , Egypt-centric Mubasher Misr , which largely reflects a Muslim Brotherhood perspective , and a slew of new Qatari-backed Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated news websites based in London , have further poisoned relations between Qatar and Egypt . Egypt 's Foreign Minister recently accused Qatar and Turkey of undermining his country 's efforts for a cease-fire in Gaza . Furthermore , some in Egypt consider Qatar 's increasingly close ties with Turkey a liability . Turkey 's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan , who is likely to be the country 's next president , in an interview with CNN called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi a `` tyrant '' adding that Egypt has no genuine role to play in Gaza . There is no doubt that Egypt will reject any offer it feels will diminish its regional role , especially one coming from Qatar and Turkey . It is ironic , therefore , that the efforts of Qatar and Turkey , who both want to see an end to the bloodshed in Gaza , are self-defeating . Hamas has genuine reasons to reject what are said to be the exact same cease-fire conditions it previously accepted in November 2012 when Egypt was ruled by its Muslim Brotherhood affiliates . The cost in Gazan lives this past fortnight has been too high to accept a return to a situation where Gaza was effectively the world 's largest prison complex , with the lifting and not a mere `` easing '' of the blockade at minimum . Qatar 's move to offer Hamas a safe refuge after the group decided to leave Syria in the wake of the civil war was a strategic move . This gave Qatar a significant advantage over most states in the region -- except , that is , for Egypt . Qatar 's recent proposal to finance a commercial port in Gaza will likely reduce Egyptian control of the movement of individuals , goods and materials in and out of the strip , and is best done with Egypt 's approval and oversight rather than without it . In an apparent attempt to placate Egypt , Qatar 's foreign minister called its role in Gaza essential , although Egypt was conspicuously absent from a Paris meeting on the current conflict that included Qatar , Turkey and some Western states . Egypt 's absence could perhaps be due to a Qatari-backed proposal announced by the Doha-based former Israeli MP Azmi Bishara to internationalize the Rafah Crossing and place it under the supervision of the U.N. and some Arab nations . Qatar should not repeat the same mistakes that offered the Brotherhood in Egypt and elsewhere a false sense of omnipotence and infallibility , and should understand that Egypt 's geographical and political leverage trumps any financial and media coverage Doha can offer Hamas . If the genuine intention is to stop the Israeli onslaught on Gaza , Doha must concede its soft power to Cairo 's hard power . The sooner Qatar realizes this , the sooner the horrible Gaza conflict will come to an end .
Egypt and Qatar have leverage over the Muslim Brotherhood , writes Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi . Al Qassemi : Neither country is fit to be an exclusive mediator in this situation . Qatar 's overall strategy with Hamas has failed miserably , he writes . Some in Qatar consider Turkey 's increasingly close ties with Qatar a liability , he says .