Israel carried out a strike in Doha targeting senior members of Hamas’s political leadership, the Israeli government said, prompting strong condemnation from Qatar and the United Nations and raising fears of a wider diplomatic escalation.
Photos posted by local and international media showed a badly damaged building in the northern Katara district of Doha. A Hamas official told the BBC that members of the group’s negotiating team were meeting at the site when it was struck. It remained unclear whether any of those present were killed or wounded.
The Israeli military accused the targeted Hamas leaders of being directly responsible for the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel and of orchestrating the subsequent campaign in Gaza. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the operation as aimed “against the top terrorist chiefs” of Hamas and said in a statement that the strike was “a wholly independent Israeli operation.” A senior Israeli official quoted by Israeli media named Khalil al-Hayya, the group’s chief negotiator and an exiled Gaza leader, and Zaher Jabarin, an exiled West Bank leader, among those targeted, and added, “We are awaiting the results of the strike.”
Qatar, which has hosted Hamas’s political bureau since 2012 and has served as a mediator in indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel, condemned the attack in the strongest terms. The Qatari foreign ministry called it a “cowardly Israeli attack that targeted residential buildings housing several members of the political bureau of Hamas,” saying the assault was “a blatant violation of all international laws and norms, and poses a serious threat to the security and safety of Qataris and residents in Qatar.”
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres also denounced the strike, calling it a “flagrant violation” of Qatar’s sovereignty. Qatar is a key U.S. ally in the Gulf and hosts a major American air base, a factor that could complicate regional diplomacy following the incident.
The strike comes amid an intensified Israeli campaign in Gaza launched after Hamas’s 7 October attack on southern Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli counts. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says at least 64,605 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since then. Israel has said it will escalate pressure on Hamas, including warnings from Defence Minister Israel Katz that Hamas leaders living abroad faced “annihilation” and that Gaza would be destroyed if the group did not release hostages and disarm.
Israeli authorities have also ordered residents of northern Gaza City to evacuate ahead of an expected ground assault, part of broader preparations for intensified operations in the enclave. Hamas leaders and officials based outside Gaza have played roles in negotiations over hostages and ceasefires, and Qatar has frequently acted as an interlocutor between the two sides.
International reactions beyond Doha and the U.N. were cautious but pointed to concern about the wider consequences of a strike on foreign soil. Diplomatic sources and analysts have said any attack inside a state that hosts mediators or foreign bases risks further destabilizing an already volatile region and complicating efforts to secure hostage releases or a ceasefire.
Israeli officials said they would provide follow-up information once the results of the operation were verified. Qatar and international bodies called for an immediate inquiry and for steps to prevent further violations of sovereignty. The situation remains fluid, with governments and international organizations awaiting clearer confirmation of casualties and any further developments stemming from the incident.