Netanyahu Brags About Bombing Qatar, Calls Doha “Hostile State”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he ordered strikes on Qatar during the Gaza war, describing the Gulf state as a “hostile” state that does not dictate Israeli policy.
In an interview with Israel’s i24NEWS on Saturday, which he shared on social media, Netanyahu said:
“I attacked Qatar, I also bombed it and attacked them during the war, and they attacked me.”
The interview comes days before the one-year anniversary of Israel’s September 9, 2025 strike on Doha. The strike targeted a meeting discussing a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal and killed five Hamas members and a Qatari security officer.
Qatar, which has hosted Hamas’s political office since 2012 at what it says was the request of the United States, condemned the attack as a “blatant violation of all international laws and norms.” Spokesperson Majed al-Ansari called it a “cowardly” assault.
The strike drew regional condemnation from Iran, Pakistan, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, with leaders from several Gulf states visiting Doha in solidarity. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called it a “flagrant violation” of Qatar’s sovereignty.
The White House later said Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump called Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani to apologise.
Defence of Qatari Funds
During the same interview, Netanyahu defended the transfer of millions of dollars in Qatari funds to Gaza, which Israel had facilitated before October 7, 2023.
He said the funds were intended for humanitarian purposes and were transferred on the recommendation of Israeli security agencies Mossad and Shin Bet.
“All this money is worth 2 percent – 2 percent of all the money that entered the Strip,” he said.
Critics in Israel have alleged the funds helped Hamas prepare for the October 7 attack that triggered the war in Gaza. Qatar denies the allegation, saying its aid went to civilians in Gaza under a transparent process monitored by the US.
“All our aid … went to Gaza, went to the people, and was under a very transparent process that the United States is fully aware about,” Sheikh Mohammed said at last year’s Doha Forum.
The remarks come weeks before Israel’s general election on October 27 — the first since the war began in 2023.
