Qatar and Egypt Urge Regional De-escalation as Top Diplomats Convene in Islamabad to Mediate Middle East Crisis

On March 28, 2026, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty in Doha to discuss ways to contain escalating tensions and prevent further deterioration in the region, according to a Qatari Foreign Ministry statement. Al Thani stressed the need to stop what he described as “unjustified Iranian aggression” against Qatar and other countries in the region, warning that irresponsible targeting of vital infrastructure—particularly facilities linked to water, food, and energy—could threaten global energy security, freedom of navigation, and regional stability.

Meanwhile, at a G7 foreign ministers‘ meeting near Paris on March 26, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was absent on the first day, with the six other member nations—Germany, the UK, France, Italy, Canada, and Japan—explicitly expressing hope for a diplomatic solution to the conflict sparked by US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

On March 29, foreign ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt convened in Islamabad for a quadrilateral meeting to coordinate mediation efforts aimed at de-escalating the widening regional war. On the military front, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement claimed its first attack of the war against Israel on March 28, followed by a barrage of cruise missiles and drones targeting strategic sites in Israel. The US Central Command confirmed the arrival of the USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship carrying approximately 3,500 Marines and sailors, to the Middle East region, fueling speculation about potential preparations for a US ground deployment regarding Iran.