Diplomacy in ruins after Israel strikes Hamas leaders in Qatar

[ad_1] Jeremy Bowen Worldwide editor

CCTV captures second of Israeli assault on Hamas leaders in Doha

Virtually precisely a yr in the past I interviewed the Hamas chief and chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya in Doha. I met him in a home not removed from the constructing that Israel attacked on Tuesday afternoon.

From the start of the struggle in Gaza, al-Hayya had been the chief Hamas negotiator, sending and receiving messages to the Israelis and Individuals through Qatari and Egyptian intermediaries.

At moments the place ceasefires have been thought probably, al-Hayya, together with the lads who have been additionally focused this afternoon, have been solely a brief distance from the Israeli and American delegations. After they have been attacked, al-Hayya and the opposite high Hamas leaders have been discussing the newest American diplomatic proposals to finish the struggle in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages.

Israel's swift declaration of what it had performed instantly fuelled hypothesis on social media that the newest American proposals have been merely a ruse to get the Hamas management in a single place the place they might be focused.

On third October final yr, as Khalil al-Hayya walked into the venue for our assembly in a modest, low-rise villa, I used to be shocked that he had so little safety. We had to surrender our telephones, and a few bodyguards got here with him into the home.

Exterior plain garments Qatari police sat smoking in an SUV. That was it. 100 bodyguards couldn't have stopped an air strike, however al-Hayya and his folks have been relaxed and assured.

The purpose was that Qatar was imagined to be secure, they usually felt safe sufficient to maneuver round comparatively overtly.

A couple of months earlier, on 31 July 2024, Israel had assassinated Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas political chief in Tehran, the place he was attending the inauguration of President Masoud Pezeshkian.

With the struggle in Gaza raging, I had questioned whether or not it is likely to be harmful to sit down in the identical room as Khalil al-Hayya. However like him, I assumed Qatar was off limits.

In the previous few a long time Qatar has tried to carve itself a place because the Switzerland of the Center East, a spot the place even enemies may make offers.

The Individuals negotiated with the Afghan Taliban in Doha. And within the virtually two years because the assaults on seventh October 2023, Qatar has been the centre of the diplomatic efforts to barter ceasefires and even perhaps an finish to the struggle.

The peace efforts, pushed by President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, have been faltering badly. However now they're in ruins. Within the phrases of 1 senior western diplomat "there isn't a diplomacy."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has informed Israelis that their enemies won't ever be capable of sleep simple and are paying the worth for ordering the seventh October assaults.

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The Israeli offensive in Gaza is gathering tempo. A couple of hours earlier than the assault on Doha, the Israeli navy, the IDF, informed all Palestinians in Gaza Metropolis to go away and transfer south. It is thought one thing like a million civilians might be affected.

In his televised feedback Netanyahu informed Palestinians in Gaza "do not be derailed by these killers. Get up in your rights and your future. Make peace with us. Settle for President Trump's proposal. Don't fret, you are able to do it, and we are able to promise you a special future, however you have to take these folks out of the best way. Should you do, there isn't a restrict to our widespread future."

If Palestinians in Gaza are in a position to hear his phrases, they may ring very hole. Israel has destroyed the houses of a whole lot of hundreds of them, in addition to hospitals, universities and faculties.

With Gaza already gripped by hunger, famine in Gaza Metropolis itself and a humanitarian disaster throughout the territory the compelled motion of many extra folks will solely enhance Israel's deadly strain on civilians.

Israel has already killed greater than 60,000 Palestinians in Gaza, nearly all of whom have been civilians. Netanyahu himself faces an arrest warrant from the Worldwide Legal Courtroom for struggle crimes, and Israel is being investigated by the Worldwide Courtroom of Justice for genocide.

The assault in Doha is an indication that Netanyahu and his authorities will press ahead as exhausting as they'll on all fronts, not simply Gaza. They're assured that with American assist, their navy can implement their will.

The Doha assault earned a uncommon rebuke from the White Home. Qatar is a precious ally, that hosts an enormous US navy base and is a serious investor within the US.

However Netanyahu seems to be calculating that Donald Trump, the one chief he feels he should hearken to, will content material himself with the diplomatic equal of a rap over the knuckles.

Israel's offensive in Gaza continues. And because the deliberate recognition of Palestinian independence on the UN later this month by the UK, France, Canada, Australia and different western nations approaches, Netanyahu's extremely nationalist cupboard allies will redouble calls to reply with the annexation of occupied Palestinian territory within the West Financial institution.