Israel launched an airstrike targeting Hamas’s leadership in capital of Qatar on Tuesday, widening its campaign against the militant group.
Hamas said of its leaders survived the attack but that five lower-ranked members were killed, and Qatar said a security official died and others were wounded.
The attack drew fierce condemnation from a string of countries, including the UK, Egypt, Germany, Libya, Saudi Arabia and Canada. The EU said the airstrike was in breach of international law.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the Israeli military had carried out a “wholly independent” operation against the “top terrorist chieftains of Hamas” and that the strike was justified.
An Israeli official told Israel’s Channel 12 that US president Donald Trump had given the green light for the strike.
The White House said it had warned Qatar before the attack, but the Doha government denied this.
Click here to follow the latest updates on Israel’s attack on the Hamas leadership in Qatar.
Qatar condemned what it describes as a “blatant violation” of international laws and a “serious threat” to civilians.
“The State of Qatar strongly condemns this attack, and affirms that it will not tolerate this reckless Israeli behaviour and the continuous tampering with the security of the region and any action aimed at its security and sovereignty,” said Dr Majed Al Ansari, a spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry.
Hamas claimed the airstrike confirmed that Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu did not want to reach any agreement and were “deliberately seeking to fail all opportunities and international efforts, disregarding the lives of their prisoners”.
Several blasts were heard in Doha on Tuesday, and black plumes of smoke were seen rising into the skyline. Images showed a building blackened and destroyed.
Qatar is the sixth country Israel has attacked since the Hamas massacre on 7 October 2023, when around 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 taken hostage. The terror attack prompted a major onslaught on Gaza in which Israel has killed around 65,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and destroyed large parts of the strip.
Attacks on the occupied Palestinian territories – which includes Gaza and the West Bank – have been aggressive and constant for nearly two years, barring periods of temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Soon after Israel’s bombardment of Gaza began, Lebanese militant group Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel in what it said was solidarity with Palestinians suffering in the war in Gaza. This continued until a ceasefire agreement was made in late 2024.
The Houthi militant group from Yemen also fired rockets towards Israel to support the Palestinians, while attacking ships in the Red Sea which it deemed were assisting Israel’s war effort. Israel has targeted Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, including airports and power stations, designed to weaken Houthi military capabilities.
Israel opened an aerial bombardment campaign just days after the rapid collapse of the rule of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, seeking to destroy Syria’s military infrastructure, airports, and other targets.
In June, Israel launched a major attack on numerous sites across large parts of Iran, including military installations, nuclear targets and weapons depots. The US later joined these strikes.
