An American report has revealed that the Israeli occupation carried out the surprise military strike targeting senior political leaders of Hamas in Qatar using fighter jets that launched long-range missiles from the Red Sea, flying over Saudi airspace before striking Doha.
According to The Wall Street Journal, “the secret plan relied on firing ballistic missiles over Saudi Arabia by fighter jets hundreds of miles away from the target. Israeli war planners, aiming to assassinate Hamas political leaders in Qatar, designed a plan that enabled them to strike swiftly and limited the U.S. ability to intervene.”
The report confirmed that the operation, carried out on Tuesday, depended on warplanes launching long-range missiles while avoiding the airspace of other Arab countries. The move, the paper noted, left the Trump administration in the dark until the final moments.
How the Strike Was Executed
The paper detailed that 12 Israeli warplanes—eight F-15s and four F-35s—flew to the Red Sea on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from Qatar. From there, some of the aircraft launched ballistic missiles toward Doha, firing over Saudi territory, according to several U.S. officials.
The report drew on interviews with senior American defence officials familiar with the operation. Several officials stated that the U.S. military was notified of the strike only minutes before it occurred. Initially, Israel withheld precise target information, but American space-based infrared sensors tracked the missile launches, confirming Doha as the destination. By then, it was too late for Washington to intervene.
A senior U.S. defence official admitted: “We were informed so late—just minutes before the launch—that there was no way to reverse or stop it.” He described the operation as “absolutely unbelievable.”
U.S. Central Command relayed the information up the chain to General Dan Keane, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who then alerted the White House. President Trump dispatched special envoy Steve Witkoff to notify Qatari officials, but Qatar confirmed the warning arrived only about 10 minutes after the missiles had already struck.
U.S. and Regional Reaction
A White House spokesperson referred to a post by Trump on Truth Social following the attack:
“The unilateral bombing inside Qatar, a sovereign state and close U.S. ally working bravely with us to mediate peace, serves neither Israel’s nor America’s interests.”
The details underscored Israel’s ability to conduct long-range precision strikes deep into the region, bypassing allies, and even striking a country central to American diplomatic strategy. By launching from the Red Sea and routing its missiles into space, Israel sought to avoid direct accusations of violating Saudi airspace, though missiles clearly passed over the kingdom. Saudi officials condemned the strike but avoided publicly addressing the Israeli overflight.
Failed Objectives
Despite the elaborate operation, Israel failed to eliminate its main targets—senior Hamas political leaders Khalil al-Hayya and Zaher Jabarin—who were meeting to discuss the latest U.S. proposals for ending the Gaza war.
According to Arab officials familiar with the incident, the leaders were not inside the room struck by the missiles but were nearby. Several were reportedly injured and rushed to the hospital, though the main leadership survived.
Instead, the strike killed several lower-ranking Hamas officials and one member of Qatar’s internal security service. Israeli officials privately admitted that the mission may not have achieved all of its objectives but insisted they were still assessing the results.
A WSJ correspondent who visited the site confirmed that the middle floor of the building was heavily destroyed, along with part of the ground floor. However, the rest of the building remained intact—evidence of a highly precise strike using small warheads.
Analysis
The revelation of Israel’s use of Saudi skies to strike Qatar highlights several key realities:
- Israel’s military reach now spans far beyond Palestine, threatening Arab states and undermining regional sovereignty.
- U.S. embarrassment was evident, with Washington sidelined until the last moments, exposing the fragility of its role as “mediator.”
- Qatar’s survival of the Hamas leadership further underscores the failure of Israel’s assassination attempt, despite massive resources and coordination.
The attack also amplifies tensions between Israel and Arab states, showing that normalisation has not shielded the region from occupation aggression but rather expanded the battleground into Gulf capitals.
