Gambiaj.com – (DOHA, Qatar) – Israel has carried out an unprecedented airstrike in Qatar’s capital, Doha, targeting residential buildings said to house senior members of Hamas’ political bureau, Qatar’s foreign ministry confirmed Monday.
The strike, which involved more than ten Israeli fighter jets and mid-air refueling for the long-range mission, hit a single residential compound in Doha’s upscale West Bay Lagoon district, home to many expatriate families.
According to Israeli officials, the operation had been in planning for months but was accelerated in recent weeks.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the attack as a potential turning point in the Gaza war, saying it “can open the door to an end of the war in Gaza.” But Qatari officials condemned the strike as a deliberate attempt to undermine peace talks.
“This attack targeted residential buildings housing several members of the Hamas political bureau,” Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said. He rejected claims that Doha had been informed in advance, describing such reports as “baseless.”
Al Ansari said Qatar only received communication from US officials after the strikes had already begun. “The communication received from one of the American officials came during the sound of explosions resulting from the Israeli attack in Doha,” he added.
The White House confirmed that Israel had notified the US military of the operation, and President Donald Trump spoke with Netanyahu following the strikes. But questions remain over whether Washington gave tacit approval or directly facilitated the mission.
Analysts warn the attack could severely destabilize ongoing negotiations. Qatar, along with Egypt, has been a leading mediator in efforts to end the war in Gaza and secure the release of Israeli hostages.
The Gulf state also hosts Hamas’ political bureau—set up at Washington’s request over a decade ago—and thousands of US troops at Al Udeid, the largest American base in the Middle East.
“This strike risks bringing the mediation to a standstill,” Hasan AlHasan, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told CNN.
He added that Gulf Arab states may now question US security commitments: “Whether the US provided tacit approval or active facilitation … this could have potentially far-reaching repercussions on the national security calculus of the Gulf.”
The strike marks the first known Israeli attack on a Gulf Arab state, escalating the regional stakes at a time when Israel has ordered the full evacuation of Gaza City, home to about one million Palestinians, ahead of its controversial ground takeover.
