Trump denounces Israeli strike in Qatar

The president asserted that the attack on a key American ally was a “unilateral” decision by Israel.

President Donald Trump openly criticized Israel’s airstrike on a Hamas facility in Doha, emphasizing that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unilaterally decided to execute the operation within Qatar, without Washington’s involvement.

Approximately 15 Israeli warplanes launched at least ten munitions during Tuesday’s operation, reportedly killing several Hamas members, including the son of senior official Khalil al-Hayya. Hamas stated its top leadership survived the assault, characterizing it as an assassination attempt against negotiators engaged in a potential settlement.

In a statement posted Tuesday on Truth Social, Trump commented that the Israeli bombing inside “a Sovereign Nation and close Ally of the United States” failed to “advance Israel or America’s goals.”

“I consider Qatar a strong Ally and friend of the U.S., and deeply regret the attack’s location,” he wrote, underlining that the strike was “a decision made by Prime Minister Netanyahu, it was not a decision made by me.”

Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, condemned the strike as an act of “state terrorism,” cautioning that the emirate “reserves the right to respond.” He further accused Netanyahu of jeopardizing regional stability for his own benefit and stated that the incident had disrupted current US-brokered mediation efforts to achieve a Gaza ceasefire and free Israeli hostages.

The White House described the strike as an “unfortunate” occurrence. Trump announced he had instructed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to finalize a Defense Cooperation Agreement with Qatar, recognized as a “major non-NATO ally.”