Israel killed any hope for deal to release hostages, says Qatar
Israel prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has “killed any hope” of a deal to release all the Israeli hostages in Gaza when he ordered an airstrike on Doha, Qatar’s prime minister has said.
Calling Tuesday’s airstrike on Doha an act of “state terror”, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani said: “I was meeting one of the hostage’s families the morning of the attack. They are counting on this mediation, they have no other hope for that.”
“I think that what Netanyahu has done yesterday, he just killed any hope for those hostages,” he said.
Al-Thani also accused Netanyahu of “wasting” Qatar’s time in hosting negotiations between Israel and Hamas. Doha will now reassess “everything” about its role as mediator in the conflict, the Qatari PM said.
Qatar, alongside the United States and Egypt, has played a major role in rounds of so-far unsuccessful talks to end the war in Gaza.
The top negotiator in the Middle East, designated as a major non-Nato ally by Washington, has hosted Hamas’s political leaders since 2012 as part of an agreement under former US president Barack Obama.
Qatar’s PM and foreign minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani addresses a press conference following Israeli strikes in Doha (AFP via Getty Images)
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 09:34
Israel deliberately targeted Hamas in Qatar as they blocked Gaza ceasefire, president says
Israel deliberately bombed the Hamas negotiating team in Qatar to remove what it said were extremists resisting ceasefire proposals for Gaza, Israel’s president said.
Isaac Herzog said the strike was aimed at Khalil al-Hayya, the main Hamas negotiator based in Doha, whom Israel claimed had thwarted attempts at brokering peace.
Speaking in a briefing, Herzog said: “We targeted those who refused to accept the deal, including primarily, al-Hayya whose hands carried the blood of thousands of Israelis.”
Also targeted were fellow Hamas politburo members Khaled Mashal and three others who were part of the group negotiating a ceasefire in Qatar via American mediators.
However, an Israeli source explained that the aim of the operation was to cut the “extremists” out of the negotiating process so that the leader on the ground, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, commander of the Qassam Brigades of Hamas, might emerge as a figure Israel could talk to.
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 08:51
Israeli president says he ‘argued out of respect’ with Starmer
Israeli president Isaac Herzog has said he “argued out of respect” with prime minister Keir Starmer as the two exchanged tough words during the former’s visit to London yesterday.
“Things were said that were tough and strong,” Herzog said, adding, “Clearly, we can argue, because when allies meet, they can argue. We are both democracies.”
The two held a “tough” meeting in Downing Street that covered deep disagreements over recent behaviour by each other’s country.
He said Sir Keir’s plan for Palestinian statehood and his views on humanitarian aid in Gaza had been the root of the disagreement and added that he had invited the British government to undertake a fact-finding mission to Israel.
British PM Keir Starmer welcomes Israel’s president Isaac Herzog to 10 Downing Street in London (Reuters)
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 08:41
Mapped: All the countries Israel has attacked in the Middle East since 7 October Hamas massacre
Israel launched an airstrike targeting Hamas’s leadership in capital of Qatar on Tuesday, widening its campaign against the militant group.
Hamas said all of its leaders survived the attack but that five lower-ranking members were killed, and Qatar said a security official also died and others were wounded.
Israel has launched a number of attacks since the Hamas attacks of October 2023, targeting several countries and territories across the Middle East.
Alongside Qatar, others include the occupied Palestinian territories, Iran, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 08:17
Trump annoyed at Netanyahu’s tactics, experts say after Israel’s attack in Doha
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not warn Washington of its plan to bomb Qatari capital Doha, US officials said, showing that it is not afraid to act against US interest.
“On this one, I think Trump is annoyed by Netanyahu’s tactics,” said Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and veteran US peace negotiator.
But, Miller added, “(Trump’s) instinct is that he agrees with Netanyahu’s notion that Hamas cannot just be hollowed out as a military organization. It needs to be fundamentally weakened.”
That lack of warning recalled Israel’s September 2024 attack on Hezbollah, when Israel wounded thousands of the militant group’s members with booby-trapped pagers, without informing then-president Joe Biden.
Trump, for his part, has occasionally expressed displeasure with Netanyahu. But his administration has strongly supported Israel’s campaign to weaken Hamas and allowed it to largely take the lead on key issues such as Iran’s nuclear programme.
A demonstrator holds a sign critical of US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a protest in solidarity with journalists in the Gaza Strip (AFP/Getty)
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 08:02
Backlash from across Middle East over Israel’s Doha strike
Qatar itself is just one of many regional powers to have strongly criticised Israel’s airstrike on Doha targeting Hamas’s political leadership.
Qatar said it condemns Israel’s violation of its sovereignty and stated that it reserves the right to respond to the strikes, saying it will “act firmly” against any “reckless breach” that threatens Qatari security.
Qatar also announced that it formed a legal team to take action against Israel in response to the strikes.
Other nations in the Gulf region have slammed Israel and vowed to support Qatar.
The UAE called the Israeli strikes a “reckless attack” and “flagrant violation” of international law, while Iran and Saudi Arabia characterised the strikes as a “criminal act.”
The Turkish foreign ministry stated that the Israeli strikes indicate that Israel does not seek a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
UAE president Mohammad bin Zayed al Nahyan and Jordanian Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah arrived in Qatar yesterday and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salam is expected to arrive in Qatar today.
Their meeting is aimed at expressing solidarity with a nation often positioned as a peace broker.
Arpan Rai11 September 2025 07:51
Qatar official says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ of hostage release with Doha strike
Qatar’s prime minister intensified his criticism of Israel over its attack targeting Hamas leaders in his country, saying Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu “killed any hope” of releasing hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.
The comments from Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani ahead of appearing at the United Nations on Thursday underscored the wider anger among Gulf Arab countries over Israel’s strike, which killed at least six people.
“I was meeting one of the hostage’s families the morning of the attack,” Sheikh Mohammed told CNN in an interview aired late Wednesday.
“They are counting on this (ceasefire) mediation, they have no other hope for that.”
Sheikh Mohammed added: “I think that what Netanyahu has done yesterday, he just killed any hope for those hostages.”
Qatar and Egypt have been key mediators to try and reach a ceasefire in the war in Gaza.
Qatar has hosted Hamas’ political leadership for years in Doha, in part over a request by the US to encourage negotiations between the militant group and Israel.
Shweta Sharma11 September 2025 07:32
Recap: Israel will kill Hamas leaders next time if they survived attack, says Israeli official
Israel will kill the leaders of Hamas if they survived an Israeli airstrike on Qatar, the country’s ambassador to the US has said.
“Right now, we may be subject to a little bit of criticism. They’ll get over it. And Israel is being changed for the better,” Yechiel Leiter told Fox News’ “Special Report” programme late on Tuesday.
“If we didn’t get them this time, we’ll get them the next time,” Leiter said.
Bryony Gooch11 September 2025 07:00
UK PM Starmer urges Israel’s Herzog to change course over Gaza
British prime minister Keir Starmer reiterated to Israeli president Isaac Herzog his “huge concern” over Gaza and implored Israel to change course during a meeting in London, Starmer’s office said.
A Downing Street spokesperson said Starmer had told Herzog Israel “must stop the manmade famine from worsening further by letting aid in and halting their offensive operations.
“Starmer also told Herzog that the UK and Israel were longstanding allies and that “he will continue his work to secure an enduring peace and a better future for the Israeli and Palestinian people alike,” the spokesperson added.
Shweta Sharma11 September 2025 06:59
Trump scolds Netanyahu over Hamas strike in Qatar
Donald Trump rebuked Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s decision to target Hamas leaders in Qatar, the Wall Street Journal reports.
According to senior US officials cited by the paper, Trump told Netanyahu in a phone call on Tuesday that striking inside the territory of a close US ally was “not wise”.
The report described the call as “heated” and said Trump was “angry” that he had not been given advance warning by Israel.
Netanyahu reportedly defended the decision, saying he had a brief window of opportunity to act.
(Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
A second call between the two later that day was described as more cordial, with Trump asking whether the mission had succeeded.
Israel carried out the airstrike in Doha in an attempt to assassinate Hamas’s political leadership. Hamas said its top figures survived, though five members were killed, including the son of exiled Gaza chief and negotiator Khalil al-Hayya.
The attack has drawn widespread international condemnation. It has also raised fears that it could derail Qatar’s mediation efforts, as the Gulf state has been central to ceasefire talks in the ongoing Gaza war.
Shweta Sharma11 September 2025 06:48
