The White House is reportedly “infuriated” following the surprise Israeli strike Tuesday on American-ally Qatar, an operation that the United States was given little advanced notice of and has put a key international alliance in jeopardy.
According to Israeli officials, the strike on Doha, the capital of Qatar, was intended to eliminate Hamas leadership, specifically those actively involved in the ongoing ceasefire negotiations. The strike was immediately condemned by Trump, who said he was “very unhappy” with what he called an “unfortunate incident.”
But behind the scenes, Trump was reportedly “infuriated,” and had a heated phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to insiders familiar with the matter who spoke with Axios in a report published Thursday.
“It's unacceptable,” Trump told Netanyahu during a phone call Tuesday, according to “two sources with knowledge,” speaking with Axios. “I demand that you do not repeat it.”
The strike has also jeopardized the United States’ relationship with Qatar, which for decades has remained a key ally in the Middle East, having even been designated a major non-NATO ally by the United States.
A “source with direct knowledge” told Axios that Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani told Steve Witkoff, the United States’ special envoy to the Middle East, that the country would reevaluate its security partnership with the United States, and “maybe find some other partners.”
Netanyahu’s response to Trump during their phone call Tuesday is unclear, but in the days since, he has defended the strikes as necessary to protect Israel’s security and to bring “terrorists to justice,” while also proclaiming that Israel would “continue to strike” as necessary.
According to Axios, Trump was not notified of the impending attack until “missiles were in the air.” According to Axios, Al-Thani told the White House that it considered the attack a “betrayal” by the United States, and that Qatar was actively engaged in conversations with other Persian Gulf nations on how to respond.
