Doha, Qatar — Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sabotaging fragile ceasefire negotiations and destroying any realistic chance of a hostage release following Israel’s strike in Doha.
In a strongly worded interview, Sheikh Mohammed said Netanyahu had “killed any hope” of freeing captives still held in Gaza. “The families were counting on this mediation. They had no other hope,” he remarked after meeting relatives of the hostages. The comments come as Qatar prepares to address the United Nations, signaling that diplomatic tensions are rapidly escalating.
The Israeli strike, launched earlier this week, killed at least six people. According to reports, the dead included lower-ranking Hamas members, the son of a senior negotiator, and several aides and bodyguards. Top Hamas leaders, however, are believed to have survived.
Qatar has long played a central role in mediating between Israel and Hamas, working alongside Egypt and under U.S. encouragement. Doha has hosted Hamas’s political bureau for years, providing a neutral ground for indirect negotiations. But Sheikh Mohammed warned that the latest strike has fundamentally undermined Qatar’s credibility as a host and could collapse the only meaningful channel for dialogue.
Netanyahu’s government defended the operation, claiming that Hamas leaders, wherever they reside, remain legitimate military targets. Israeli officials argued that no location should serve as a safe haven for those orchestrating attacks against Israel. Netanyahu himself reportedly warned that any country sheltering Hamas leaders would be “held accountable” if it failed to act against them.
The Qatari government immediately lodged a formal protest, condemning the strike as a violation of sovereignty. Officials in Doha have hinted at organizing an emergency Arab-Islamic summit to rally regional support and pressure Israel diplomatically.
International reactions have been mixed. While some Western leaders expressed concern about the impact on negotiations, others have remained cautious, refraining from openly criticizing Israel. Analysts note that this development could mark a turning point: if mediation collapses, the possibility of securing hostage releases through diplomacy may vanish entirely, leaving only military options on the table.
For the families of hostages, the blow is devastating. Many had believed that Qatar-backed talks offered the best—if not only—path to bringing their loved ones home. Now, with negotiations in disarray, uncertainty is deepening. Sheikh Mohammed warned that Netanyahu’s decision will be remembered not only as a military action but as a political miscalculation that worsened the humanitarian crisis.
The Doha strike underscores the fragility of regional diplomacy at a time when tensions between Israel, Hamas, and mediating states are already stretched thin. As Qatar weighs its next move, the broader question remains: can trust be rebuilt, or has the path toward a ceasefire and hostage release been permanently destroyed?
