Qatar rejects Netanyahu’s UN allegation, accuses Israel of deflecting from Gaza policies

Qatar on Thursday rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's accusation that it is conducting a campaign aimed at influencing public opinion against Israel, calling the allegation an attempt to divert attention from Israel's actions in the occupied Palestinian territories.

"We categorically reject Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's accusation, made in his address to the UN General Assembly, that the State of Qatar is conducting a campaign to influence public opinion against Israel.

"This continuing rhetoric against Qatar is nothing more than an attempt to divert attention from the attrocities committed by his government in the occupied Palestinian territories and their grave humanitarian consequence," Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said in a statement.

He pushed back against claims that the growing criticism of Israel around the world, particularly among younger people, is the result of organized influence campaigns.

"Reducing the growing shift in global public opinion, particularly among young people, to allegations of 'influence campaigns' is an insult to the awareness and judgment of a generation that is witnessing, in real time and before the entire world, what is taking place on the ground and forming its views accordingly," al-Ansari said.

He said if Netanyahu and other Israeli politicians want to change how Israel is viewed internationally, they should focus on government policies rather than blaming Qatar or other outside actors.

"Attempts to hold Qatar, or anyone else, responsible for a global shift in public opinion shaped by what people themselves are witnessing are no longer persuasive," the spokesman said.

He called on Israel to change its policies, respect international law and take responsibility for its actions.