ISTANBUL

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called Thursday for halting Israeli attacks in Lebanon amid a massive aerial campaign on the Arab country.

"We call for serious cease-fire efforts to stop Israel’s aggression against Lebanon," Sheikh Tamim said in his opening speech at the Asia Cooperation Dialogue summit in Doha.

He said Israel is exploiting "international inaction" to expand its settlement building in the occupied West Bank and implement its plans against Lebanon.

"It has become crystal clear that what is happening is genocide, in addition to turning the Gaza Strip into an area unfit for human habitation," the Qatari ruler stressed.

Tamim reiterated that establishing a Palestinian state is the only way to ensure regional peace.

Regional tensions have escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 41,700 people, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack last October.

The conflict spread to Lebanon with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country, which have killed more than 1,100 people and injured over 3,000 others since Sept. 23.

The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the Gaza conflict into a wider regional war.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar