President Trump "feels very badly about the location" of Israel's airstrike in Qatar, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday. She said Trump "views Qatar as a strong ally and friend of the United States" and he has given assurances that there won't be a repeat, Politico reports. "Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign nation and close ally of the United States, that is working very hard, and bravely taking risks with us to broker peace does not advance Israel or America's goals," Leavitt told reporters. "However, eliminating Hamas ... is a worthy goal," she said.
Leavitt said Trump spoke to the emir of Qatar after the attack and assured him "such a thing will not happen again on their soil." She said the US military informed Trump that Israel was striking "Hamas, which was unfortunately located in a section of Doha, the capital of Qatar." Leavitt said Trump directed envoy Steve Witkoff to warn Qatar of the "impending attack." Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari, however, said there was no advance warning of the attack, reports Reuters. He said that a US official called when the sounds of explosions could already be heard in Doha.
Leavitt said Trump also spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the attack, the Guardian reports. She said Trump believes "this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for peace." Hamas, meanwhile, said the Israeli strike failed to kill senior officials, though it killed the son of Khalil al-Hayya, the group's chief negotiator, along with his office manager and three other people associated with Hamas, the New York Times reports. Qatari officials, who strongly condemned the strike, said a member of the emirate's security forces was also killed.
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