Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently boasted in an interview about ordering strikes on Qatar. “I struck Qatar, I carried out bombing attacks too. I struck them during the [Gaza] war. And they struck me too,” he said.
Netanyahu made the remarks in an interview with Israel’s i24 News. He himself released the interview on social media Saturday, describing Qatar as a “hostile” state.
Netanyahu also claimed that during the Israeli military’s ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in the Gaza war, Qatar was unable to exert any influence over Israel’s policymaking.
Qatar had tried to mediate an end to the Gaza war. The country has long played the role of mediator in various conflicts across the Middle East and the world.
Since 2012, the Qatari government had also allowed the Palestinian liberation group Hamas to operate a political office in the country. Qatari authorities have said they did so at the request of the United States.
On Sept. 9, 2025, Israel struck Doha, Qatar, killing five senior Hamas leaders. A Qatari security officer was also killed in the strike. The five Hamas leaders were meeting at the time to discuss a Gaza ceasefire. Israel carried out the strike while the meeting was underway.
Doha condemned the strike, calling it “a clear violation of all international laws and norms.” Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed al-Ansari, called the strike “cowardly.”
Iran, Pakistan and several other countries also condemned the strike on Qatar. As an expression of solidarity, leaders of Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia visited Qatar shortly after the strike.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the strike a “clear violation” of Qatar’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Netanyahu released the video of this interview just days before the first anniversary of Israel’s strike on Qatar.