Israel attempted to kill senior members of Hamas’s leadership in an airstrike on Tuesday in Qatar, a primary mediator to end the war in Gaza and a U.S. ally.
The Israeli attack on Qatari soil could complicate ties between the nations and undermine cease-fire negotiations.
Here’s what to know.
Why Did Israel Attack?
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement on Tuesday that they had ordered the attack on Qatari soil “in light of an operational opportunity” and “given the fact that it was this Hamas leadership that initiated and organized the October 7 massacre,” as well as subsequent attacks on Israel.
“Over are the days when leaders of terror enjoy immunity anywhere,” Mr. Netanyahu said in a speech later on Tuesday, in reference to the strike.
Who Was Killed?
A Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman, Majed al-Ansari, said that the attack in the capital, Doha, had targeted a residential building where senior Hamas politicians lived. The area hit was near schools and foreign embassies. The strike killed a member of Qatar’s internal security forces and injured others, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
Hamas said that Israel had failed to kill senior officials in the group. But the son of Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas’s chief negotiator, was killed in the attack, as was his office manager and three other people affiliated with Hamas.
How Have Qatar and Others Responded?
Qatar denounced the attack, as did others in the international community.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Qatar’s prime minister, said, “We have reached a decisive moment where there must be a response from the entire region to such barbaric actions.” He accused the Israeli government of trying “to sabotage every attempt to create opportunities for peace.”
Middle Eastern nations, including Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, condemned the strikes, as did France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, who called it “unacceptable, whatever the reason” and Keir Starmer, prime minister of Britain, who warned it could “risk further escalation across the region.”
President Trump said on social media on Tuesday that he did not make the decision to attack Qatar and was informed of it too late to stop the strike. “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,” he wrote. “However, eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal.”
How Unusual Is This?
Though Israel has assassinated Hamas leaders and other enemies on foreign soil, the attack in Qatar stands out because the nation has been seen as neutral and an important intermediary. Israel has previously avoided alienating it.
Israeli leaders view Qatar with some suspicion, but its negotiators visit often and it is a strong U.S. ally, hosting an American military base.
Mr. Netanyahu’s government has been emboldened in the last year, while its enemies are weakened, to act more aggressively around the region, bombing Iran for 12 days in June, carrying out strikes and ground incursions in Syria, and invading Lebanon last year for the first time since 2006 to fight the militant group Hezbollah.
What Assassinations Abroad Has Israel Carried Out?
Ismail Haniyeh, who led Hamas’s political office, was killed last year while visiting Iran with a bomb planted in the guesthouse where he was staying. Mr. Katz, Israel’s defense minister, later acknowledged Israel’s role in the assassination.
Israel has carried out multiple killings of nuclear scientists and others in Iran, and, while at war with Iran in June, targeted Israeli attacks killed top Iranian government and military officials.
Last year, Israel also killed top officials of Hezbollah, in Lebanon, including its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and his presumed successor, Hashem Safieddine. Hezbollah began regularly firing on Israel shortly after the war in Gaza began, prompting first retaliatory fire and then a devastating Israeli offensive; a cease-fire was reached in November.
Israel carried out an airstrike last year in Syria that killed top Iranian military officers who worked with Hezbollah.
Last month, Israel killed senior members of the Houthi group in Yemen, including the militia’s prime minister, Ahmed al-Rahawi. The Houthis have been attacking Israel and commercial ships in the Red Sea. Like Hezbollah, the group is backed by Iran and said it was acting in solidarity with Hamas.
Where Do Cease-Fire Negotiations Stand?
Hamas said in a statement that their officials were discussing a cease-fire proposal by Mr. Trump when they came under attack.
The new proposal envisions a comprehensive agreement rather than the staggered approach to talks taken previously, and Mr. Trump on Sunday predicted that there would be a deal “very soon.” But the proposal appears to leave some of the most difficult points to be hammered out in further negotiations.
Qatar will continue serving as a mediator in the war, Sheikh Mohammed, the prime minister, said on Tuesday, but the country’s government has also formed a legal team to determine how to respond to Israel’s attack.
Isabel Kershner, Adam Rasgon and Ronen Bergman contributed reporting.
Ephrat Livni is a Times reporter covering breaking news around the world. She is based in Washington.
The post What to Know About Israel’s Airstrike on Hamas in Qatar appeared first on New York Times.
