U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Israel’s decision to launch an airstrike in Qatar, aimed at assassinating Hamas leaders, was made solely by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and not by the White House.
The rare strike inside a Gulf ally has drawn widespread condemnation across the Middle East and raised fears of a broader regional escalation.
“Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign nation and close ally of the United States, does not advance Israel or America’s goals,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “However, eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal.”
The attack, which struck the Qatari capital Doha, killed five Hamas members including the son of senior exiled Gaza leader Khalil al-Hayya, according to the group. Qatar, a key mediator in ceasefire and hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas, dismissed U.S. claims it had been warned in advance.
Officials in Doha said the only call from Washington came as explosions were already rocking the city.
Trump said he instructed U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to alert Qatari authorities but acknowledged the warning came too late. He later phoned both Netanyahu and Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, assuring the latter that “such a thing will not happen again on their soil.”
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Trump admitted he was “not thrilled” about the strike, adding: “We want the hostages back, but we’re not thrilled about the way it went down today.”
The strike comes against the backdrop of Israel’s nearly year-long war in Gaza, where authorities say tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, the entire population displaced, and famine conditions set in.
Rights experts and international scholars have described Israel’s campaign as genocide, charges Israel rejects, insisting its actions are self-defense following the October 2023 Hamas assault that killed 1,200 people and left more than 250 taken hostage.
Israel has since expanded its military operations to Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Yemen, drawing growing criticism for destabilizing the region. Tuesday’s attack in Qatar, home to the U.S. al-Udeid Air Base, marks a dramatic escalation, underscoring tensions between Washington’s closest Middle East ally and one of its most strategic Gulf partners.
Outside the White House, pro-Palestinian protesters denounced the strike, chanting “Free free Palestine” and “Stop arming genocide.”
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
