DOHA: Qatar authorities has strongly denied a White House claim that it was warned before Israel attacked Hamas negotiators in its capital, saying the call from Washington came only after the bombings had begun.
The White House said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump’s administration had informed Qatari authorities before the Israeli attack in Doha. According to local officials, the attack targeted a residential area in the Qatari capital, killing five Hamas members and a Qatari security officer.
White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt told reporters that Israel had “unfortunately targeted Hamas members in Doha,” but stressed that unilateral bombing inside Qatar “would not advance Israeli or US objectives.”
Levitt added that Trump had instructed his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, to inform Qatari authorities of the impending strike.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry denied the claim, saying it had no prior information. Ministry spokesman Majid Al-Ansari wrote on Twitter that the US call came “during the sound of the explosion.”
Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani said the information was received from Washington ten minutes after the attack began. He condemned the incident, calling it “state terrorism” and a violation of Qatari sovereignty.
Trump later expressed regret, saying he “feels very bad about the location of the attack” and assured Qatar that it would not happen again. He made it clear that the strike was an independent decision by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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