Netanyahu says Israel attacked Qatar
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an interview with i24NEWS that Israel attacked Qatar during the war in Gaza. He also rejected critics’ accusations that Qatari funds whose transfer to Gaza was approved by Israel may have been used for purposes other than humanitarian aid.
As Al Jazeera English reports, Netanyahu called Qatar a “hostile” state and said that Doha did not determine Israel’s policy. The interview, which he shared on social media, was released several days before the first anniversary of the Israeli strike on Doha on September 9, 2025.
Strike on Doha
According to Al Jazeera English, five Hamas members and an employee of Qatar’s security service were killed in the strike on the Qatari capital. The strike was carried out during a meeting where a US-backed proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza was being discussed.
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Qatar condemned the attack as a violation of international law. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the strikes a blatant violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Later that month, Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump called Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, to apologize for the strike.
Qatari funds for Gaza
Netanyahu also defended the transfer of millions of dollars in Qatari funds to Gaza. According to him, the money was intended for humanitarian needs, and its transfer was recommended by the Israeli security services Mossad and Shin Bet. The prime minister said these funds accounted for 2% of all money that entered the Gaza Strip.
Some of Netanyahu’s critics claimed that the funds may have helped Hamas prepare its attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Qatar rejects these accusations, saying that its aid reached Gaza residents through a transparent procedure of which the United States was informed.
