'No country is safe:' Israeli strikes in Qatar condemned globally
Israeli strikes on Doha, Qatar, targeting Hamas leadership, are facing widespread global condemnation on social media.
On Tuesday, around 12 air strikes struck residential buildings in Doha around 4pm local time (1pm GMT), targeting Hamas leadership, according to a statement by the Israeli military.
Hamas leadership was there to discuss the latest US ceasefire proposal for Gaza, presented to the group in recent days.
A source close to the Palestinian movement told Middle East Eye that all senior leaders targeted in the attack survived, including Khalil al-Hayya, Khaled Meshal, Zaher Jabarin, and others. However, the attack killed Hammam al-Hayya's son, Khalil, and his office director, Jihad Lubbad, sources told MEE. Several others were wounded.
Qatar strongly condemned what it described as a "cowardly Israeli attack", confirming the strikes had hit residential buildings housing several members of Hamas’s political bureau.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE were among the Gulf countries condemning the attack, warning of "grave consequences resulting from the Israeli occupation’s persistence in its criminal transgressions".
The Turkish foreign ministry said that “Israel does not aim for peace, but rather seeks to continue the war”, while the ruling party’s spokesperson said “Israel's attack carried out in Qatar is a barbaric act of terrorism.”
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres condemned the attack as "a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar", while Pope Leo said the entire situation is "very serious."
Iran, Jordan, Syria, and Pakistan also strongly condemned Israel’s attack on Qatar, with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif calling it a "brazen violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar".
Reactions on social media
On social media, many from the region, as well as from Palestine, demonstrated their shock at Israel’s "flagrant attack" on Qatar, specifically considering Qatar’s ongoing role in the mediation of the Gaza ceasefire and other regional conflicts.
One person noted that Article 7 of Qatar's 2003 constitution enshrines mediationand the peaceful settlement of disputes as a cornerstone of the country’s foreign policy.
Social media users also mentioned that Qatar hosts a massive American base, and Israel’s actions are “beyond limits”. Many also said that being a US ally does not protect one from attacks by Israel.
Another social media user said that Israel is “a colonialist project, and an illegitimate rogue regime” because Israel attacked Qatari soil “after all their good faith efforts”.
US President Donald Trump "blessed" Israel’s attack on Doha, US and regional officials told MEE, adding that the US was notified of the attack in advance.
Some on social media were more sceptical about the Israeli attack on Qatar, saying that "Qatar hosts Hamas leadership as a means to prove itself useful to the US", not for the sake of the Palestinian cause.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israeli Katz said they began preparations for the Doha strikes after Monday's shooting attack in Jerusalem, and the killing of four Israeli soldiers in Gaza on Monday.
Speaker of the Israeli Knesset, Amir Ohana, shared a video of the Israeli strikes on Doha with a caption in Arabic that reads: “This is a message for the entire Middle East.”
In the last 24 hours, Israel has bombed at least five countries and territories in the region: Tunisia, Lebanon, Syria, Gaza and Qatar.
While Israel has attacked a number of Arab and Muslim countries in the region over recent weeks and months, Tuesday’s strike on Qatar is unprecedented.