The White House on Tuesday moved quickly to distance President Donald Trump from Israel’s unprecedented strike on Hamas leaders inside Qatar, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying the president was not consulted and did not support the action.
“The Trump administration was notified by the United States military that Israel was attacking Hamas, which very unfortunately was located in a section of Doha, the capital of Qatar,” Leavitt told reporters.
She stressed that Trump did not authorize or encourage the move. “Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign nation and close ally of the United States that is working very hard, and greatly takes risks with us to broker peace, does not advance Israel or America’s goals,” Leavitt said.
While the administration has repeatedly backed Israel’s right to target Hamas operatives, the strike in Doha — home to much of Hamas’s external leadership and a key hub for negotiations — has long been considered a red line. However, analysts note that it is difficult to believe the White House really didn’t know about the strike beforehand and weren’t looped in on every details. It is possible – even likely – that the White House is claiming it didn’t know about it to lessen geopolitical fallout.
Leavitt said Trump remained committed to eliminating Hamas but argued the strike undermined diplomatic channels. “Eliminating the mobs who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza is a worthy goal,” she said. She added that U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff informed Qatari officials of the impending attack.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
Pres. Trump should probably have listened to the many on both sides and never have taken the Qatari jet. This is an example how it complicates foreign policy. Pres. Trump absolutely knew Israel was going to attack Qatar and it obviously gave it the green light because otherwise Israel would not have gone ahead, but now Trump has to be dishonest and say he knew nothing about it to keep Qatar from getting mad and somehow rebuke Israel for taking action which is unfair to Israel. Probably most people including the people of Qatar don’t believe Trump, which makes him look bad in the eyes of the world. Return that jet!