On September 9, Israel executed an attack on Hamas leadership in Doha, the capital of Qatar. According to NPR, Hamas claims that five of its members were killed. They also claimed that Israel failed to eliminate any members of a Hamas negotiating team that was discussing a proposed ceasefire to end the ongoing war in Gaza.
The Qatari Foreign Ministry immediately condemned the Israeli strike, stating “The State of Qatar strongly condemns the cowardly Israeli attack that targeted residential buildings housing several members of the Political Bureau of Hamas in the Qatari capital, Doha. This criminal assault constitutes a blatant violation of all international laws and norms, and poses a serious threat to the security and safety of Qataris and residents in Qatar.’
Since this attack marks the first time Israel has struck Qatar’s capital, the Qatari government’s reaction is far from unexpected. More surprisingly, the attack was condemned by the United States as well.
According to The Hill, Washington received only a few minutes’ notice before missiles slammed into Doha. President Donald Trump expressed his displeasure in a Truth Social post.
“This was a decision made by Prime Minister Netanyahu, it was not a decision made by me,” Trump said. “Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign nation and close ally of the United States, that is working very hard and bravely taking risks with us to broker peace, does not advance Israeli or American goals. I view Qatar as a strong ally and friend of the US, and feel very badly about the location of the attack.”
Qatar has long been an ally of the US. According to The Hill, Al-Udeid Air Base in the country houses 10,000 US soldiers, and Qatar recently signed more than $1.2 trillion in commercial and defense deals with the United States.
It is also important to note that the Israeli strike targeted a Hamas negotiating team who were, according to Al Jazeera, discussing a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal intended to halt nearly two years of war in Gaza. It is likely that the strike has reduced the chances of Hamas accepting that ceasefire, and therefore of ending the war in Gaza.
According to the BBC, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strike was “fully justified” because it targeted senior Hamas leaders who organised the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war.
Justified or not, however, the strike is likely to set Israeli-Hamas peace efforts back greatly. Not only has Hamas had its negotiators targeted, but Qatar is unlikely to be as inclined to support negotiations when they result in Israeli strikes on its capital. The strike is also a blow to US interests, both due to the weakened Israeli-Hamas negotiations and the increasing Israel-Qatar hostility, which pits two US allies against each other.
Many other nations responded to the attack as well. According to The Hill, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called the attack “a flagrant violation of sovereignty and territorial integrity.” The UAE blasted the strike as “blatant and cowardly.” Turkey condemned it as “terrorism as state policy.” Jordan’s King Abdullah stated “Qatar’s security is Jordan’s security.”
Overall, the strike is having negative impacts on foreign relations in the Middle East, not just for Israel, but the US as well.
