Footage from Doha, shared on social media and local television channels, showed what appeared to be a huge blast centred on a residential area with smoke towering above the city and residents running for safety. Trump, had given the green light for the attack Israel claimed but the US reportedly was told about the attack after it was launched , which angered the US president
Israel's military said Tuesday it carried out an airstrike targeting Hamas leadership as blasts rocked the Qatari capital of Doha. The Palestinian militant group said that while its top leadership had survived the attack, a Qatari security officer and five of its members had been killed, including the son of Hamas's exiled Gaza chief Khalil al-Hayya.
President Donald Trump chided Israel on Tuesday over its attack targeting Hamas' leadership in Qatar, a country that has hosted Gaza peace negotiations and a military base for thousands of U.S. troops.
"Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a Sovereign Nation and close Ally of the United States, that is working very hard and bravely taking risks with us to broker Peace, does not advance Israel or America's goals," Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the decision to carry out the attack.
He added, "I view Qatar as a strong Ally and friend of the U.S., and feel very badly about the location of the attack."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt read a similar statement at Tuesday's briefing.
Speaking to reporters later that night, Trump said, "I'm not thrilled about it."
"I was very unhappy about it, very unhappy about every aspect, and we got to get the hostages back. But I was very unhappy about the way that went down," he said of the attack.
Trump has largely supported Netanyahu during ramped-up Israeli military operations in Gaza, which in recent days have led to the demolition of several high-rise buildings and dozens of deaths in the densely populated urban environment of Gaza City.
Netanyahu said on Tuesday that the military strike in Qatar targeted the planners of Hamas-led attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which saw 1,139 people killed and around 250 people taken hostage.
Trump's criticism may have stemmed from his being kept in the dark about Israel's attack plans. He wrote on Truth Social that the U.S. military informed his administration that "Israel was attacking Hamas which, very unfortunately, was located in a section of Doha, the Capital of Qatar."
The attack could easily derail all diplomatic efforts for a peace deal. On Friday, Trump said the United States is in "very deep" negotiations with Hamas.
At the same time, Trump wrote Tuesday that "eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal." The comment made his public criticism of Israel even more unexpected.