US president Donald Trump has said Israel’s “unfortunate” airstrike on Qatar does not advance the goals of either Israel or America.
“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 Israel or America’s goals,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Hamas said five of its lower-ranking members and a Qatari security official were killed in the airstrike in Doha, but that all its leaders survived the attack.
The group on Monday admitted being behind a gun attack in Jerusalem that killed six people.
Hamas’s exiled leadership has long been based in Qatar, which has served as a mediator in talks between Hamas and Israel, even before the latest war in the Gaza Strip. A strike on its leadership could further complicate negotiations over a ceasefire and the release of hostages taken in Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attack.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the action was a wholly independent Israeli operation and had been “entirely justified”.
