On September 9, Israeli forces carried out an unprecedented airstrike on a gathering of Hamas political leaders in Doha, Qatar. The attack, a first on Qatari soil, killed at least six people, among them three senior aides of Khalil al-Hayya and a Qatari security officer. Surviving members of the delegation immediately dispersed, scrambling to salvage the hostage-release and ceasefire talks that Qatar has been brokering alongside Egypt and the United States.
Qatar responded by branding the strike “state terrorism,” condemning it as a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and international law. Within hours, Gulf Cooperation Council capitals mobilized high-level delegations to Doha - the President of the United Arab Emirates arrived to confer with the Emir, followed by Saudi and Jordanian envoys. Once engaged in normalisation talks with Israel, these states now view the strike as an assault on a regional partner and a destabilising act that threatens collective security under the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League.
Qatar, a key U.S. ally and host to one of its most important military bases, finds itself at a crossroads, balancing its role as a mediator with the need to assert its sovereignty. The Emirate’s diplomatic machinery is now in overdrive, coordinating with regional and international partners to craft a unified response.
Turkey’s foreign ministry accused Israel of choosing war over peace, while France declared the attack unacceptable under any circumstances and Germany warned that targeting negotiators risked derailing efforts to free hostages.
Even in Washington, where Israel remains a key ally, U.S. President Donald Trump voiced deep unease. He stopped short of full condemnation but made clear that he was “not thrilled” by an operation that could imperil a deal his administration has championed. Global leaders converged on Doha in a rare display of unity, underscoring shared alarm over the strike’s potential to ignite further regional instability.
The timing could not have been worse for the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner-swap negotiations. The Hamas delegation in Doha had been reviewing the latest U.S. proposal and coordinating terms for a prisoner exchange when their meeting was shattered. With key envoys killed or scattered, trust has frayed, raising doubts about Hamas’s willingness to re-engage and about Qatar’s ability to prosecute legal claims against Israel at international courts. The broader viability of U.S.-mediated diplomacy now hangs in the balance.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the strike as a necessary blow against those behind the October 7 attacks. Many Gulf observers contend that, since the conflict erupted in October 2023, Netanyahu and his team have deliberately stoked escalation and sabotaged every ceasefire effort.
Echoing Netanyahu’s hardline stance, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, characterized the Doha operation as merely the beginning of a sustained campaign against Hamas. In a pointed interview with Fox News, he warned that Israel would continue its pursuit of Hamas leadership: “If we missed them once,” he declared, “we will get them next time.”
Regional powers now face a fraught calculus: how to uphold collective security commitments within the Gulf Cooperation Council, balance Qatar’s dual role as both a U.S. military partner and Arab League member, and manage the risk that this escalation in Doha could spill into wider conflict.
On September 10, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, to express India’s grave concern over the breach of Qatari sovereignty. He acknowledged Qatar’s steadfast commitment to brokering a Gaza ceasefire and securing the release of hostages, and implored the international community to recommit to the two-state solution as the only viable path to enduring peace.
These developments mark a seismic shift in Gulf diplomacy. As alliances are tested and legal battles loom, the coming days will determine whether Doha’s network of mediators can restore momentum to ceasefire talks, or whether this unprecedented strike has permanently fractured the fragile architecture of Middle East peace. As the war escalates, New Delhi must navigate its support for counterterrorism while reaffirming its commitment to the Two-State Solution. The attack in Doha underscores the urgency for India to take a principled stand against regional destabilisation, especially as its economic and strategic interests in the Gulf deepen.
Vaishali Basu Sharma is a security and economic affairs analyst.