KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has left for Qatar to attend an emergency Arab-Islamic summit in Doha, called in response to Israel’s recent airstrike on the Qatari capital.
Anwar is expected to deliver Malaysia’s national statement at the summit tomorrow, reaffirming the country’s firm stance on ending what it views as Israel’s blatant violations of international law, including the UN Charter and state sovereignty, which threaten both regional and global stability.
He travelled aboard a special aircraft that departed the Subang Royal Malaysian Air Force base at 7pm today, accompanied by Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Dr Zulkifli Hasan and senior foreign ministry officials.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan will join the delegation in Doha. Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar was present at the base to see the prime minister off.
According to Wisma Putra, Anwar’s participation underscores Malaysia’s solidarity with Qatar and its continued defence of Palestinian rights amid what it has condemned as Israeli brutality.
The summit is expected to adopt a final communiqué outlining joint actions and collective positions of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states.
The extraordinary summit, preceded by a ministerial preparatory meeting, comes days after Israel carried out an unprecedented strike on Doha’s Leqtaifiya district on September 9.
Reports said about 15 Israeli fighter jets were involved in the attack, which killed six people, including the son of senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya, his office director, and a Qatari security officer.
Hamas leaders, reportedly meeting to discuss a US-backed ceasefire proposal for Gaza, are believed to have survived.
Anwar has previously described Israeli actions in Gaza and beyond as “inhumane insolence”, stressing that Malaysia would continue to raise its voice against what it sees as aggression and oppression of the Palestinian people. — September 14, 2025