'Qatar harbours and funds Hamas': Netanyahu defends strike on Hamas meeting in Doha

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said that last week’s strike targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar was “justified” due to the Gulf state’s connections to the group.

“Qatar is connected to Hamas, it harbours Hamas, it funds Hamas. It has strong levers (that it could pull), but it chose not to,” AFP quoted Netanyahu as saying during a press conference.

“Therefore our action was entirely justified,” he added.

The strike on the Hamas meeting in Doha was unprecedented: it was the first time Israel hit targets in US‑ally Qatar.

Six people were killed, none of them the senior Hamas leaders Israel says it was targeting, according to both militant sources and Israeli reports.

Qatar — which has no diplomatic relations with Israel — has long hosted Hamas leadership and has acted as a mediator in ceasefire negotiations and hostage release talks following the October 7, 2023 attack that led to the Gaza war.

More from World

Qatar hosts Arab-Islamic summit to decide how to restrain Israel after Doha strike Israel-Hamas conflict spills over peace mediator Qatar, Trump denies US role in Doha strike

From 2018 to 2023, it provided monthly cash aid to Gaza under Hamas control with approval from Netanyahu’s cabinet.

Earlier this year, Israeli media reported that two of Netanyahu’s aides are under Shin Bet investigation for allegedly receiving payments from Qatar — a scandal dubbed “Qatargate.”

Netanyahu, summoned to testify in March, dismissed the probe as a “political witch hunt.”

The controversy is believed to have played a role in the removal of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and moves against Attorney General Gali Baharav‑Miara, as reported by Israeli outlets.

Impact Shorts

More Shorts

Russia & Belarus practise launching Putin's nuclear weapons deployed in Belarus, says Lukashenko

Wheat for cars, seeds for construction goods: Russia resorts to barter trade with China amid sanctions

With inputs from agencies