Israel launched a strike targeting Hamas’ leadership in Qatar on Tuesday, officials said, further widening its campaign against the militant group.
Qatar has served as a key negotiator in efforts to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip, and it was unclear if the attack would stall those efforts.
U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack, saying “all parties must work towards achieving a permanent ceasefire, not destroying it.”
It wasn’t immediately clear how the attack was carried out, though an Israeli military spokesman referred to Israel’s air force carrying out the strike. Qatar Airways continued landing in Doha amid the strike, even as at least one Qatari air force aircraft took off on patrol over the country.
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That’s according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly about the sensitive matter.
Pentagon officials referred questions about coordination to the White House. And the White House officials did not respond to request for comment.
It was not clear how much warning was provided or whether the U.S. expressed approval for the strike.
Congressional leaders appeared caught off guard by Israel’s strike.
“I’m not sure about that development,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said when asked about the situation at his weekly press conference Tuesday. “We’ll have to reserve judgement.”
Senate leaders Democrat Chuck Schumer and Republican John Thune made no mention of the strikes in their opening remarks as the chamber convened.
It was unclear if they had been briefed ahead of the action.
— By Zeke Miller
The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the strikes, describing them as “evidence of Israel’s expansionist policies and its adoption of terrorism of state strategy.”
The ministry’s statement expressed Turkey’s solidarity with Qatar and renewed a call on the international community to exert pressure to halt Israel’s actions in the Palestinian territories and the wider region.
Omer Celik, the spokesman for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party, described the attack as a “barbaric act of terrorism.”
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the Israeli strikes were “part of a series of attacks committed by Israel, demonstrating its insistence on undermining all efforts made to achieve stability and security in the countries of the region and the safety of its people.”
Since a ceasefire nominally put an end to the latest war between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in November, Israel has continued to launch near-daily strikes in Lebanon.
Aoun urged “the international community to put an end to these Israeli practices that continue to violate all international laws and agreements and obstruct every commendable effort made by the State of Qatar to establish peace in the region and put an end to the suffering of the brotherly Palestinian people.”
The Egyptian presidency said in a statement that the attack “targeted a meeting of Palestinian leaders in the Qatari capital, Doha, to discuss ways to reach a ceasefire agreement” in Gaza.
“This attack sets a serious precedent and an unacceptable development, and constitutes a direct assault on the sovereignty of the sisterly State of Qatar, which plays a pivotal role in mediation efforts to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip,” it said.
When asked if the British government had been told, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman Dave Pares, pointed to a statement by Israel’s prime minister saying the attack was a solely an Israeli operation.
Pares called Hamas “a vile terrorist organization,” but did not directly criticize the Israeli attack.
“We do not want to see a further escalation in violence which risks further destabilization in the region. Our overarching priority is to see an end to the horrific suffering in Gaza,” he said.
Starmer is scheduled to meet Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday. Pares said the British leader would use the meeting to “raise the intolerable situation in Gaza and the action Israel must take to end the horrific suffering.”
In a phone call with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman described Israel’s attack on Doha as a “criminal act and a flagrant violation of international law.”
He offered Saudi Arabia’s “full solidarity” with Qatar.
Mohammed al-frah a member of the Houthis’ political office, posted his condemnation of the attack on X, saying Israel and the United States are fully responsible.
“This cowardly operation was nothing but a deliberate assassination attempt against the negotiating delegation, a despicable effort to eliminate any prospect for peace, and an execution of any diplomatic hope in the region,” he said.
Iraq’s foreign ministry said in a statement that this “cowardly act represents a flagrant violation” of Qatar’s sovereignty and poses a threat to its security and stability.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterates Iraq’s firm position in standing with the government and people of the sisterly State of Qatar, and fully supporting it in confronting any attacks that undermine its sovereignty or threaten its national security,” the statement read.
Danny Danon defended his country’s strike Tuesday on Hamas’ headquarters in Doha, saying “there is no hiding place for terrorists.”
“The precise strike in Doha targeted senior Hamas leaders who planned the October 7 massacre and celebrated while our citizens were abducted,” Danon posted on X. “I commend our security forces for this courageous and precise operation.”
“We are just learning about the Israeli attacks in Qatar, a country that has been playing a very positive role to achieve a ceasefire and the release of all hostages,” Guterres told reporters at a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
“I condemn this fragrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar,” he said, adding “all parties must work towards achieving a permanent ceasefire, not destroying it.”
Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said Tuesday that his government is prohibiting the entry of Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, and Bezalel Smotrich, its finance minister.
In a televised address Monday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called Israel’s attacks in Gaza an “extermination of a defenseless people.”
Israel banned the entrance of two of Spain’s ministers in response to that speech.
Sánchez also announced he was formalizing an arms embargo on Israel and prohibiting ships carrying fuel for Israel’s armed forces from using Spanish ports.
In a statement, Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Abou Gheit said the attack violated Qatar’s sovereignty.
He said Israel “does not care about the consequences of its shameful actions.”
