Ten Israeli fighter jets struck Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday.
The strike was intended to target senior Hamas leaders. The White House said it issued a warning to Qatar ahead of the strike through Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East.
But Qatar’s foreign minister declined to receive any communication from Washington, D.C., according to the White House.
President Donald Trump weighed in on the attack Tuesday afternoon in a Truth Social post.
The U.S. military notified the president of the attack in Doha earlier in the morning, he wrote in the post, adding that the decision to strike was solely Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s.
“I immediately directed Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to inform the Qataris of the impending attack, which he did; however, unfortunately, too late to stop the attack,” Trump wrote. He also said the attack didn’t advance the goals of Jerusalem and Washington, D.C., but he considered “eliminating Hamas” a “worthy goal.”
Trump called Qatar a “strong ally and friend,” adding he felt “very badly about the location of the attack.” The president called for the release of the hostages and a ceasefire in the region.
“I also spoke to Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu after the attack. The Prime Minister told me that he wants to make Peace. I believe this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for PEACE,” Trump wrote in the post.
“I also spoke to the Emir and Prime Minister of Qatar,” he wrote. “I assured them that such a thing will not happen again on their soil.”
Trump said he directed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to work on a “Defense Cooperation Agreement with Qatar.”
What are Israeli and Qatari officials saying?
Netanyahu said that “Israel takes full responsibility” for the operation.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog revealed one of the targets behind the strikes: Khalil al-Hayya, a high-level Hamas official who is a certain figure in both the ceasefire talks with Gaza and the negotiations to release the remaining hostages.
Qatar “strongly” condemned the attack, criticizing Israel for targeting residential areas where members of the Political Bureau of Hamas live, the nation’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Hamas released a statement after the attack. “We confirm the enemy’s failure to assassinate our brothers in the negotiating delegation. However, a number of our martyred brothers have ascended to the highest ranks of glory,” the statement said, as per CNN.
Hamas reported that five of its members were dead.
World leaders react
United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the Israeli strike, as did Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, French President Emmanuel Macron and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.
“I condemn Israel’s strikes on Doha, which violate Qatar’s sovereignty and risk further escalation across the region,” said Starmer in a post on X.
“The priority must be an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages and a huge surge in aid into Gaza.”