Netanyahu Apologizes To Qatar For Doha Strike, At Trump’s Direction

During the early part of the meeting with President Trump for a full day of events at the White House on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to make nice with Qatar, a crucial US military and regional Gulf ally. Five Hamas officials and a Qatari security guard died as a result of the September 9 attack on Doha. In the wake, there was immense controversy over how much the US knew ahead of time.

Netanyahu in the Monday phone call apologized to the Prime Minister of Qatar, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. They spoke for several minutes, according to Israel’s Channel 12.

Importantly, President Trump himself was on the call, and so all of this seems the result of mediation by the US leader.

Israeli media writes that „Netanyahu apologized for violating Qatari sovereignty in the strike. It says it is possible that Israel may pay compensation to the family of the guard.”

„The report says the apology is central to the current effort to finalize a deal to end the war in Gaza and secure the release of all hostages, since Qatar had been refusing to mediate negotiations with Hamas since the Israeli strike, which targeted but failed to kill several key Hamas leaders in Doha,” Times of Israel details.

Trump wants to put this whole episode behind the US and Israel, amid suspicions from Arab officials that he 'greenlighted’ the brazen Doha attack (a claimthe US rejects), for the sake of pushing his Gaza peace plan:

It further reports that Trump, in an earlier conversation with the emir of Qatar before Netanyahu arrived at the White House, said that he wants the leaders of all eight Arab and Muslim states with whom he met last week and to whom he presented the deal, to publicly support it even though he’s made changes to it that move it closer to Israel’s positions.

President Donald J. Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict:

1. Gaza will be a deradicalized terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbors.

2. Gaza will be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza, who have suffered more than enough.

3. If… pic.twitter.com/veqhr9MW28

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 29, 2025

Netanyahu had faced some degree of internal intelligence opposition to pulling the trigger on the strike, which utilized long-range missiles launched from jets operating above the Red Sea.

His own intelligence officials argued that this would effectively shut the door on any future negotiations with Hamas to get the hostages back.

But Netanyahu is now demonstrating his 'shoot first, apologize later’ approach – and Qatar will likely have to be satisfied with this, given it will fall under pressure by the US administration to do so. He just told FOX:

„We weren’t attacking Qatar anymore than the US was attacking Pakistan when it took out Bin Laden.”

Given past threats like the below, was the apology genuine?

BREAKING

Netanyahu threatens Qatar with more airstrikes:

'I say to Qatar and all the countries that harbor terrorists, either expel them or bring them to justice, because if you do not, we will do it’ pic.twitter.com/1LiKVSKUtp

— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) September 10, 2025

Qatar has long been a loyal oil and gas powerhouse to Washington, and has a significant lobby on Capitol Hill. Previously it was instrumental in the West’s pursuit of regime change in Syria, after which Assad was toppled and al-Qaeda linked Jolani came to power. It will likely 'accept’ Bibi’s 'apology’ and move on hosting major US military and intelligence assets on its soil.