Trump rebukes Israel for ‘unfortunate’ strike on Hamas leadership in Qatar

Washington: US President Donald Trump has issued a rare rebuke of Israel after it launched a deadly strike against the leadership of Hamas in Doha, the capital of American ally Qatar, amid ongoing negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of hostages held by the terrorist group.

Israel immediately confirmed it conducted the strikes. “Today’s action against the top terrorist chieftains of Hamas was a wholly independent Israeli operation,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “Israel initiated it, Israel conducted it and Israel takes full responsibility.”

Israeli media reported the United States was given notice of the operation, citing officials. But Trump said his government was told about the strikes by the US military, and rebuked Israel over the “unfortunate” incident.

“I’m not thrilled about the whole situation, it’s not a good situation,” he told reporters. “We want the hostages back, but we are not thrilled about the way that went down today.”

Earlier, Trump said on social media that his administration had been notified by the US military that Israel was attacking Hamas, who were “very unfortunately” located in Doha. He said the decision was Netanyahu’s and “it was not a decision made by me”.

“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,” Trump said. “However, eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal.”

Trump’s said he instructed his special envoy Steve Witkoff to warn the Qataris of the impending attack, but it was “too late”. Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani said the US warned of the strike 10 minutes after it had begun.

Trump spoke to the Qatari PM and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani after the strikes, and thanked them for their friendship.

“I assured them that such a thing will not happen again on their soil,” Trump said. “I view Qatar as a strong ally and friend of the US, and feel very badly about the location of the attack.”

The emir told Trump on their call that Qatar would take all necessary measures to protect its security and preserve its sovereignty. At the United Nations Security Council, Qatar said it would “not tolerate this reckless Israeli behaviour and the ongoing disruption of regional security”.

“The State of Qatar strongly condemns this cowardly criminal assault, which constitutes a blatant violation of all international laws and norms,” Qatar’s ambassador to the UN, Alya Ahmed Saif al-Thani, wrote to the council in a letter reported by Reuters.

Trump said he spoke to Netanyahu after the attack, and the Israeli prime minister told him he wanted to make peace. “I believe this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for PEACE,” Trump said on Truth Social.

The strikes targeted Hamas’ political leadership in residential buildings in Doha. Hamas’ political bureau has operated openly in Qatar since 2012. The listed terrorist group said in a statement that its top leaders survived the strike but five lower-level members were killed, including the son of Khalil al-Hayya – Hamas’ leader for Gaza and its top negotiator – and the head of Hayya’s office.

Hamas, which has sometimes only confirmed the assassination of its leaders months later, gave no immediate proof that Hayya and other senior figures had survived.

The Israel Defence Force described the operation a precise strike aimed at killing the senior leaders of Hamas, and said the IDF would continue to “operate with determination” to defeat the terrorist group responsible for the attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.

“Prior to the strike, measures were taken in order to mitigate harm to civilians, including the use of precise munitions and additional intelligence,” the IDF said.

The strike came hours after Israel’s military told Gaza City residents to evacuate ahead of its planned offensive to take control of what it portrays as Hamas’ last remaining stronghold, and where hundreds of thousands of people remain struggling under conditions of famine.

The alerts directed at Gaza City were the first calling for a full evacuation. Until now, the military had only told specific sections of the northern city to evacuate ahead of operations or strikes.

The Qatar attack also came after the US made a new proposal for Hamas to release the remaining hostages it captured on October 7, 2023, believed to be 48 people, with 20 still alive. Trump said on Monday (AEST) that Israel had accepted his terms and it was time for Hamas to do the same.

“I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting,” he said at the time. “This is my last warning, there will not be another one!”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST) that Trump was not referring to Israel’s operation in Doha when he issued that warning.

Qatar has been the key mediator in negotiations between Israel, Hamas and the US since the October 7, 2023 massacre by Hamas which killed about 1250 Israelis, and Israel’s ensuing war in Gaza, which has killed about 60,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong condemned Israel’s strike. “We don’t think this was the right thing to do,” she told Channel Seven’s Sunrise program Wednesday morning.

“It’s a strike that violates Qatar’s sovereignty. It undermines or potentially damages the possibility of ceasefire and the release of hostages, and obviously, it risks escalation.”

Wong said it was important to remember Qatar had been working with the US to try to achieve a ceasefire and the return of the hostages. “They’ve been tireless in those negotiations. That’s the context in which this strike has occurred.”

Other global leaders also condemned Israel’s attack, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney, who called it “an intolerable expansion of violence”.

The European Union expressed solidarity with Qatar and its people. “Any escalation of the war in Gaza must be avoided – it is in no one’s interest,” said a spokesperson for EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.

The Zionist Organisation of America said it was fully supportive and proud of Israel’s strikes, which showed that “justice will reach wherever enemies of Jews reside, whether in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran or even Doha”. Morton Klein, the group’s president, said the world should applaud Israel for its “brilliant and courageous actions”.

But Ilay David, brother of Evyatar David, an Israeli hostage held by Hamas, told CNN he didn’t know how to feel about the attack and its potential impact on negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of the final hostages.

“We’re just so confused. I don’t know if it’s good or bad, I have no idea,” he told the network. “Those [targets] were the people, as I understand it, that Qatar used in the negotiations. Right now, I don’t know who Israel is going to negotiate with.”

With AP, Reuters

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