Israel has launched airstrikes across four fronts in just two days, targeting Qatar, Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, in what analysts warn is a dangerous escalation that could push the Middle East into wider war.
The most shocking strike came in Doha, Qatar, where Israeli missiles hit a Hamas delegation engaged in U.S.-backed ceasefire talks. The strike killed six people, including the son of Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya and a Qatari security officer. Hamas insisted its top leadership was not harmed and remained intact.
Qatar, which has served as a key mediator between Israel and Hamas, condemned the attack as “state terrorism” and a “cowardly criminal act”. Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani warned that the assault had shattered trust in diplomacy and vowed legal retaliation, while insisting Qatar would not abandon its mediation role.
Damaged building after the Qatar attack Photo Courtesy Ibraheem Abu Mustafa:Reuters
The United States, Israel’s closest ally, also voiced unease. President Donald Trump said he was “very unhappy” with the decision and revealed Qatar received a warning call only as the missiles were already falling. In an unusually sharp rebuke, Trump told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly: “You don’t bomb your mediator.”
At the same time, Israeli jets struck Hezbollah positions in northeastern Lebanon and hit military sites in Syria’s Homs and Latakia provinces. Both countries accused Israel of reckless aggression.
In Gaza, Israel ordered nearly a million Palestinians to evacuate Gaza City as airstrikes leveled high-rise buildings. Humanitarian agencies warn that with famine already gripping the territory, a full-scale ground invasion could trigger catastrophe on an unprecedented scale.
Israel has defended its actions as part of its campaign to eliminate Hamas, citing a recent Hamas attack in Jerusalem. But critics point to the contradictions: Israel insists it will not tolerate terrorism, while simultaneously attacking foreign capitals and killing civilians in what many describe as terrorist acts themselves.
With Qatar’s mediation under attack, Gaza on the brink, and Lebanon and Syria once again in Israel’s crosshairs, the question hangs heavy: if a mediator’s capital can be bombed without consequence, what is stopping any nation from striking another tomorrow?
