Qatar Says Iran US Talks Continue Amid Regional Escalation

Qatar said October 20, 2026, that diplomatic engagement between Iran and the United States continues despite mounting regional hostilities, with Doha working alongside Washington, Tehran and other mediators to pursue an agreement. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, an adviser to the Qatari prime minister and Foreign Ministry spokesperson, warned that unchecked escalation could expand the conflict into a wider regional war.

Speaking at the Global Security Forum in Doha, Al Ansari said negotiations concerning the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) remained active. He emphasized the importance of confidential diplomacy and coordinated efforts to address multiple conflicts simultaneously.

Al Ansari described the ongoing diplomatic engagement and the role of regional partners.

"The negotiation is ongoing. We are seeing engagement from the parties," said Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari, adviser to the Qatari prime minister and Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

He said the negotiations followed an earlier effort to use a ceasefire as a foundation for diplomatic discussions. That arrangement failed when fighting resumed, highlighting the difficulties facing the current process.

"Escalation left unchecked will mean that we are spiraling towards a regional war that will expand beyond the borders of our region," Al Ansari warned.

He explained that Qatar viewed a ceasefire as an opening for further negotiations rather than a complete resolution of the underlying disputes.

"Any ceasefire is basically a door that opens towards a destination rather than the destination itself," Al Ansari said.

The previous ceasefire arrangement subsequently failed, according to the Qatari official.

"broke down again," Al Ansari said, describing the previous ceasefire.

Qatar also called for simultaneous diplomatic efforts to contain conflicts across the region, including tensions involving Yemen and Iran. Al Ansari described the developments as part of a broader escalation that had been unfolding since 2023.

"The only way to make sure that that doesn't continue is to start defusing all of these conflicts at the same time," Al Ansari said.

He also criticized political rhetoric that could aggravate regional instability, particularly statements emerging from Israel.

"We are concerned about a lot of the statements coming out, political statements that are coming out, especially from Israel," Al Ansari said.

He argued that regional instability should not become an instrument for domestic political disputes.

"not something that any responsible statesman should do," Al Ansari said, referring to exploiting regional instability for political infighting.

On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Al Ansari said the absence of a viable political process was undermining prospects for a settlement.

"Sadly, right now we do not have a partner for peace in Israel," Al Ansari said.

He questioned whether Israeli political parties and candidates were presenting a credible path toward peace with the Palestinians.

"The only thing that we hear coming out of Israel right now is about war and death and destruction," Al Ansari said.

He warned that continued violence could perpetuate the cycle of conflict.

"war begets war, conflict begets conflict," Al Ansari said.

According to figures cited by Anadolu Agency, Israel's war on Gaza since October 2023 has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians and injured over 175,000, while approximately 90% of the enclave's civilian infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.

Al Ansari said mediation could succeed without direct trust between the opposing parties if both sides had confidence in the negotiating mechanism.

"It is trust in the process, not trust in each other, that allows for mediation to succeed," Al Ansari said.

Qatar separately reaffirmed its support for Saudi Arabia amid escalating regional tensions, according to remarks reported by The Peninsula Qatar.

"Qatar is supporting our brothers in Saudi Arabia in defending their sovereignty against this attack," Al Ansari said.

The regional situation includes intensifying hostilities involving Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Houthis, with the Saudi-led coalition conducting airstrikes against Houthi positions and the group launching missiles and drones toward Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump criticized Iran during remarks in Kansas on Monday, accusing the Iranian government of killing Americans with roadside bombs and executing protesters by hanging them from cranes. He also referred to the 2020 US drone strike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.

Trump described the Iranian government's request for assurances against further killings.

"They wanted me to guarantee that we won't kill them like we killed the others," Trump said of the Iranian regime.

He linked his criticism to American casualties from roadside bomb attacks attributed to Iran over the years.

"And you know why? Because they've killed a lot of Americans with their roadside bombs over the years," Trump said.

Trump then referenced Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike during his first presidential term.

"Soleimani was killed. You know Soleimani by me in the first term, Soleimani was killed," Trump said.

He also made a claim about the number of protesters killed in Iran during the preceding eight months.

"But they did a lot of a lot of killing. They did a lot of killing. And by the way, in the last eight months, they've killed 75,000 minimum protesters," Trump said. The figure was Trump's claim and was not independently substantiated in the supplied reports.

Trump attributed the lack of protests to the danger faced by demonstrators.

"Somebody said, I wonder why they don't protest. Well, well, it's a little hard when you got machine guns at the end of the street shooting you down," he said.

He also condemned Iran's reported executions of protesters.

"They hang them by cranes. They hang up by cranes for all to see. A very, sad thing. Rough group," Trump said.

Separately, Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Doha was coordinating with Washington and Tehran alongside other mediators to seek an end to the regional war.

"We are working with Washington and Tehran in partnership with other mediating countries to end the war in the region," the Qatari spokesperson said, according to Newsquawk.

Al Ansari also said that confidential negotiations could be more effective than public exchanges, with Qatar continuing to facilitate engagement between the parties despite unresolved disputes and renewed fighting.

"The fact that we're not hearing about it is a good sign that we're doing our job the right way," Al Ansari said.

He reiterated that the negotiations remained active under the JCPOA framework.

"On the negotiations of the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action], they are ongoing, we are seeing engagement from both parties," Al Ansari said.