Israeli strike on Doha sparks regional condemnation

September 10, 2025 (MLN): Israel carried out a strike against Hamas' senior leadership on Tuesday in Doha, the capital of Qatar, marking a significant escalation in its multifront conflict in the region.

Six people, including a Qatari security officer, were killed in the attack, Hamas said in a statement.

The precision strike, part of what Israeli officials dubbed "Operation Summit of Fire," was unprecedented in its boldness, targeting senior Hamas officials in the heart of a nation that had long served as a mediator in the Gaza conflict.

Hamas said that an Israeli strike in Doha killed five members but did not assassinate the negotiating delegation.

The terrorist organization claimed its leadership had survived, though the psychological impact of the attack was immediate and far-reaching.

The strike represented more than just another military operation, it was an assault on the very foundations of Middle Eastern diplomacy.

Qatar, which houses the largest U.S. military base in the region and had been instrumental in ceasefire negotiations, suddenly found itself transformed from mediator to victim.

As news of the attack spread, phones began ringing in palaces and presidential offices across the Islamic world.

In Islamabad, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif received the details with growing alarm and immediately reached out to His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Amir of Qatar.

The conversation that followed would become a defining moment in Pakistan-Qatar relations. Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the strike as "totally unjustified" and a "dangerous provocation" on X, saying he had spoken with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to express Pakistan's sympathy and solidarity.

Prime Minister Sharif's words carried the weight of a nation's outrage.

He didn't mince words, calling the Israeli action "a dastardly act" that revealed the true mindset of Israeli leadership, leaders who, in his view, were willing to go to any length in pursuit of their objectives, regardless of international law or diplomatic norms.

He assured the Amir that "Pakistan stood like a rock with the State of Qatar" against Israeli hostilities and emphasized the urgent need for unity within the Muslim Ummah at this critical time.

The White House expressed disapproval with the attack, saying a unilateral strike in a country that's a U.S. ally "does not advance Israel or America's goals," and tried to tip off Qatar in advance.

Even Israel's closest ally found itself in the uncomfortable position of publicly criticizing the operation.

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