Israel says it targets Hamas leadership in Qatar’s capital as blast heard in Doha

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel launched a strike targeting Hamas’ leadership in Qatar on Tuesday, officials said, further widening its campaign against the militant group as negotiations over ending the war in the Gaza Strip appears stalemated before a new military offensive there.

Black smoke rose over the skyline of the Qatari capital, Doha, with authorities there acknowledging the strike. It wasn’t immediately clear if anyone was hurt in the attack, marking the second time the energy-rich nation has been directly attacked in the nearly two years of war that have gripped the wider Middle East since Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

It wasn’t immediately clear how the attack was carried out, though an Israeli military spokesman referred to Israel’s air force carrying out the strike. Qatar Airways continued landing in Doha amid the strike, even as at least one Qatari air force aircraft took off on patrol over the country.

Qatar condemned what it referred to as a “cowardly Israeli attack” on Hamas’ political headquarters in Doha. Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari called it a “flagrant violation of all international laws and norms.”

Qatar’s vast Al-Udeid Air Base, home to the U.S. military’s forward headquarters for its Middle East-based Central Command, came under Iranian attack during the 12-day Iran-Israel war that saw American bombers attack Iranian nuclear sites.