The Israeli military says explosions seen and heard in the Qatari capital, Doha, are the result of an assassination attempt against Hamas leaders. Senior Hamas member Suhail al-Hindi reportedly said that the Hamas leadership survived the attack.
As per Al Jazeera, Tuesday’s attack is the first by Israel in Qatar, a key mediator in ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas and home to the region’s largest United States military base, Al Udeid Air Base.
Israel has been bombarding Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen and Syria as well as carrying out daily attacks in the occupied West Bank in Palestine.
A Hamas source told Al Jazeera that the attack in Doha targeted the Hamas negotiating team. The attack came as the negotiators were meeting to consider the latest ceasefire proposal put forth by the US.
The Israeli military released a statement saying it and the Shin Bet intelligence service “recently carried out a targeted attack on the top leadership of the Hamas….”
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also released a statement, saying, “Israel initiated it, Israel conducted it, and Israel takes full responsibility.”
Israel has assassinated many of Hamas’s top military and political leaders in the last two years, such as top political leader Yahya Sinwar; military commander Mohammed Deif, one of the founders of the Qassam Brigades in the 1990s; and political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Iran’s capital, Tehran.
In a statement, Majed al-Ansari, spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the country “condemns in the strongest terms” the attack, which he said was carried out on residential buildings housing several members of the Hamas political bureau.
“This criminal attack constitutes a flagrant violation of all international laws and norms and a serious threat to the security and safety of Qataris and residents of Qatar,” the statement said.
“While strongly condemning this attack, the State of Qatar affirms that it will not tolerate this reckless Israeli behaviour and its continued tampering with regional security, as well as any action targeting its security and sovereignty. Investigations are underway at the highest level, and further details will be announced as soon as they become available.”
Qatar’s Interior Ministry said in a later statement that that situation in Doha was safe, and specialised teams were working at the scene of the strike.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned Israel’s strikes as a “flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar.”
He said Qatar has been playing a very positive role to try and achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of captives held by Hamas.
“All parties must work towards achieving a permanent ceasefire, not destroying it,” he said.
All of the key Gulf states and several other Arab nations have also issued strong statements condemning the attack.
The strikes in Doha come less than two weeks after Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir pledged to target Hamas leaders wherever they were in the world following a situation assessment meeting with his top commanders.
