The Gulf country has been working alongside the United States and Egypt for months on futile talks between the warring parties in Gaza, and any disengagement from that process could further complicate efforts to reach a deal.

Qatar’s ministry also said media reports about the future of Hamas’ political office in Doha were inaccurate, without specifying how. Reuters had quoted a US official as saying on Friday that Washington had asked Qatar to expel the group and that Doha had conveyed that message to Hamas.

An official briefed on the matter also said on Saturday that Qatar had concluded that, with mediation efforts halted, the Hamas political office there “no longer serves its purpose”.

But three Hamas officials, speaking off the record, said the group had not been informed by Qatar that its leaders were no longer welcome in the country.

Qatar has hosted Hamas political leaders since 2012 as part of a deal with the US, and the group’s presence there has facilitated progress in the talks.

The war broke out when Hamas gunmen attacked Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, killing an estimated 1,200 people and seizing another 253 as hostages. Israel’s military campaign leveled much of Gaza and killed an estimated 43,500 Palestinians.

“Qatar notified the parties 10 days ago, during the last attempts to reach an agreement, that it will stop its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel if no agreement is reached in the round,” the foreign ministry said of Qatar.

“Qatar will resume these efforts with its partners when the parties demonstrate their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war.”

There has been no official response from Hamas or Israel.

The last round of talks in mid-October failed to reach an agreement, with Hamas rejecting a proposed short-term ceasefire. Israel has previously rejected some proposals for a longer truce. Disagreements centered on the long-term future of Hamas and Israel’s presence in Gaza.

Washington told Qatar that Hamas’ presence in Doha was no longer acceptable in the weeks since the group rejected the proposal in October, a US official said on Friday.

Qatar has not set a deadline for closing the Hamas political office or for Hamas leaders to leave Qatar, the official briefed on the matter said.

Qatar’s foreign ministry said the Hamas office was a channel of communication between the parties in Gaza and said it contributed to a brief ceasefire and hostage exchange a year ago.

The official briefed on the matter pointed to an earlier episode in April when Qatar reconsidered Hamas’ presence in the country, prompting some Hamas officials to leave for Turkey.

“After two weeks, the Biden administration and the Israeli government asked Qatar to request their return,” the official said, adding that Washington said negotiations were ineffective when Hamas leaders were in Turkey.

Qatar, designated by Washington as a major non-NATO ally, has long sought a role as a link between Western powers and their adversaries in the region.

The country is home to the largest US air base in the Middle East, but also allows Hamas and the Taliban in Afghanistan to operate offices in Doha. He also helped negotiate a prisoner exchange between the US and Iran last year.

It is not clear how many Hamas officials live in Doha, but they include several possible replacements for leader Yahya Sinwar, who Israeli forces killed in Gaza last month.

They include Sinwar’s deputy Khalil al-Hayya, who led the ceasefire negotiations for the group, and Khaled Meshaal, widely regarded as the diplomatic face of Hamas.

The group’s former leader, Ismail Haniyeh, who was almost certainly assassinated in Iran in July by Israel, was based in Doha. His body was flown to Qatar for burial in early August.