Jerusalem/Doha — If Israel failed to kill Hamas leaders in an air strike on Qatar on Tuesday, it would succeed next time, the Israeli ambassador to the US said after the operation, which raised concerns it would torpedo efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.
“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.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with the attack in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday, escalating its military action in the Middle East in what the US described as a unilateral attack that does not advance American and Israeli interests.
The air strike took place shortly after Hamas claimed responsibility for a shooting on Monday that killed six people at a bus stop on the outskirts of Jerusalem. The widely condemned Doha operation was especially sensitive because Qatar has been hosting and mediating in negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Gaza war.
“If we didn’t get them this time, we’ll get them the next time,” Leiter said.
Treacherous
Hamas said five of its members had been killed in the attack, including the son of its exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator Khalil al-Hayya. It said its top leaders survived.
Qatar, which said one of its security forces was killed in the attack, said Israel was treacherous and engaged in “state terrorism.”
The attack generated a flurry of diplomacy between Arab states.
UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Qatar on Wednesday, UAE state news agency WAM reported.
Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein is also expected to visit Qatar on Wednesday, while Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is expected to arrive in Doha on Thursday, an official with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
The visits were a show of regional solidarity with Qatar after the Israeli strikes, the official said.
The European Commission will propose sanctioning extremist Israeli ministers and the suspension of trade-related measures in a EU agreement with Israel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
The proposals reflect growing EU criticism of Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza and increased pressure on the bloc’s executive body to take action.
Dialogue
Germany, one of Israel’s staunchest supporters, has taken note of those proposals targeting Israel and will participate in a dialogue about future measures, foreign minister Johann Wadephul said on Wednesday.
A US state department spokesperson said the latest measures announced by the Spanish government against Israel, limiting access to Spanish ports and airspace to ships and planes carrying weapons for Israel, are “deeply concerning”.
A spokesperson for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Doha air strike followed an Israeli warning to Palestinians to leave Gaza City, an area once home to about a million people, as it tries to destroy what is left of Hamas.
Residents there expressed alarm the Doha strike might destroy chances for a ceasefire.
Occupation
Families, some carrying their belongings on vehicles, donkey carts and rickshaws, continued to stream out of Gaza City along the coastal road in anticipation of a major Israeli offensive.
“Does this mean there is no hope a ceasefire can be reached? I am afraid that now Israel would speed up its occupation of Gaza City,” said Um Tamer, 65, a mother of five.
At least 30 people were killed across the enclave on Wednesday, according to medics.
Asked how the strike would affect ceasefire negotiations, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters:
“The honest answer is, we simply don’t know. Hamas has rejected everything so far. They continually reject every offer that’s put on the table.”
The militant group, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades but today controls only parts of the enclave, on Saturday once again said that it would release all hostages if Israel agreed to end the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all of the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering.
He has defied global condemnation of operations like the one that struck Doha on Tuesday, extending military operations across the Middle East, severely weakening Israel’s Iran-backed enemies since Hamas attacked Israel in 2023.
Israel has killed several top Hamas leaders since the Palestinian militant group attacked Israel in October 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians and taking 251 hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s military response in Gaza has killed more than 64,000 people, mostly civilians, according to local health authorities, and reduced the Palestinian enclave to rubble.
Reuters
