President Donald Trump recently issued an unusual critique of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following airstrikes targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar. This marks a notable deviation as Trump has consistently provided unwavering support to Netanyahu since resuming his presidential duties in January.
The American president did not hide his discomfort regarding the airstrikes, stating that he attempted to prevent them, but unfortunately, it was too late. On his platform, Truth Social, Trump denied any involvement in the decision to strike, asserting that it was made solely by Netanyahu.
He expressed, “I view Qatar as a close ally and friend of the United States, and I deeply regret the site of the attack,” while also maintaining that eliminating the Palestinian movement remains a “noble objective.”
Following the Israeli attacks, Trump released a statement that closely mirrored one previously delivered by White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt to journalists.
He remarked, “A unilateral bombardment of Qatar, a sovereign nation and close ally of the United States, which is diligently and courageously working with us to achieve peace, does not serve the interests of Israel or America.”
Trump stressed that Washington was not informed in advance about the Israeli operation in Doha.
He noted that the White House was “informed by the U.S. military that Israel was targeting Hamas, which was unfortunately located in a part of Doha.”
In the aftermath of the strike, Trump quickly called on Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, to finalize a defense cooperation agreement with Qatar.
For its part, Doha, through Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, stated that it “reserves the right to respond” to the Israeli attack.
Al Thani emphasized that Qatar was not forewarned about the assault by Washington, noting that the American contact came only about ten minutes after the strike occurred.