By Agence France-Presse
Deadly Israeli air strikes targeted senior Hamas leaders on Tuesday in U.S. ally Qatar, the venue of repeated rounds of Gaza peace talks, drawing a rare rebuke from President Donald Trump.
The Palestinian militant group said six people were killed in the strikes, including a son of its top negotiator, but that its senior leaders had survived. Qatar said one of its security officers also died.
The White House said Trump did not agree with Israel’s decision to take military action on the U.S. ally’s soil and had warned Qatar in advance of the incoming strikes.
But Qatar, which hosts a large U.S. military base, said it had not received the warning from Washington until the attack was already underway.
The emirate’s prime minister said it reserved the right to respond to the Israeli attack, which it said constituted a “pivotal moment” for the region. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani told a press conference, “We believe that today we have reached a pivotal moment. There must be a response from the entire region to such barbaric actions.”
Qatar said the strikes targeted the homes of several members of Hamas’ political bureau residing in the Gulf country.
Three bodyguards and negotiator Khalil al-Hayya’s aide and son were all killed in the attack, Hamas said, affirming “the enemy’s failure to assassinate our brothers in the negotiating delegation.”
Qatar’s interior ministry said a member of its internal security forces was killed in the strikes and several other security personnel were wounded.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the strikes in response to a Monday shooting in Jerusalem that killed six people and was later claimed by Hamas.
A joint statement from Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said, “Yesterday, following the deadly attacks in Jerusalem and Gaza, Prime Minister Netanyahu instructed all security agencies to prepare for the possibility of targeting Hamas leaders.”
‘Flagrant violation’
The reaction from Washington to the attack on its ally was a rare personal rebuke for Israel from Trump.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, reading from a statement.
“While eliminating Hamas was a ‘worthy goal,’ a strike in the Qatari capital does not advance Israel or America’s goals. The president views Qatar as a strong ally and friend of the United States, and feels very badly about the location of this attack.”
Trump had his envoy notify Qatar of the impending Israeli attack, the White House said, adding that the U.S. president spoke with the leaders of both countries after the strikes.
Leavitt said, “President Trump immediately directed Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to inform the Qataris of the impending attack, which he did.”
But Qatar said the strikes were already underway when the US official called. Qatar Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Majed al-Ansari posted on X, “The call received from an American official came as explosions sounded from the Israeli attack.”
It is the first time Israel has carried out air strikes in the Western-backed Gulf state. Since Hamas’ October 2023 attack, it has also carried out strikes in Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, as well as the Palestinian territories.
Speaking at a U.S. embassy event in Jerusalem later, Netanyahu said “terrorist leaders” would no longer be safe anywhere in the world.
Along with the United States and Egypt, Qatar has led multiple attempts to end the Israel-Hamas war, which was sparked by the Palestinian militant group’s October 2023 attack, and secure the release of the remaining hostages.
The main Israeli group campaigning on behalf of the hostages expressed “deep concern” following the Israeli attack on Hamas leaders.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said, “The families of the hostages are following the developments in Doha with deep concern and heavy anxiety. A grave fear now hangs over the price that the hostages may pay.”
‘Sledgehammer’ to diplomacy
The strikes have drawn condemnation, including from UN chief Antonio Guterres, who condemned Israel’s “flagrant violation” of Qatari sovereignty.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said the Israeli attack “not only violates Qatar’s territorial sovereignty, but also jeopardizes all of our efforts to secure the release of the hostages.”
The attack came as Israel stepped up a deadly assault on Gaza City, the Palestinian territory’s largest urban center. It marked a sharp escalation in the territory of a state that has been a driving force in ceasefire efforts.
The Qatari prime minister vowed that the Israeli strikes would not stop the emirate from continuing its efforts to broker a ceasefire in Gaza. Sheikh Mohammed said, “Nothing will deter us from continuing this mediation in the region.”
But analysts warned that the strikes had likely derailed any potential for a Gaza truce. Muhammad Shehada, a political analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations told AFP, “Israel knows exactly what it just did. It just killed the negotiations and any chance of getting its hostages back.”
