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Turkish and Egyptian officials warned Hamas political leadership to tighten security around their meetings in the weeks before Israel's attack on the group in Doha, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing interviews with officials from Israel, the U.S., Qatar and other Arab countries on Wednesday.
Hamas senior leaders flew over the weekend to the group's headquarters in the Qatari capital of Doha to discuss a new U.S. ceasefire plan for Gaza, apparently with Israeli backing.
"In the weeks before the attack, Hamas leaders got a vague but stern warning: 'Tighten security around your meetings,' Egyptian and Turkish officials told them," the report noted.
A Qatari security personnel was killed in the Israeli airstrike that targeted Hamas leadership in Doha on Tuesday, Qatar's Interior Ministry said. Several members of the Internal Security Force were also injured in the attack.
The ministry confirmed that explosions heard in the capital on Tuesday were the result of an Israeli strike on residences housing members of the Hamas political bureau.
According to the statement, Qatari authorities continue to survey and secure the targeted area to ensure effective containment and control of the situation.
The ministry said several civilians were injured in the Israeli attacks and were hospitalized to receive medical attention.
Hamas said five of its members were killed in the Israeli attack but said its negotiating delegation had survived the strike.
Israel's military confirmed that it conducted a "precise strike" on senior Hamas leadership, without specifying the Qatari capital.
Hamas senior leaders flew over the weekend to the group's headquarters in the Qatari capital of Doha to discuss a new U.S. ceasefire plan for Gaza, apparently with Israeli backing.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had given the green light for an audacious attack on Qatari soil, targeting a residence used by Hamas officials.
Over 10 Israeli jet fighters fired long-range munitions at the house, causing explosions heard across the capital.
"You can shoot from pretty far away," said Amir Avivi, a former senior Israeli military official who is close to the current government, speaking to WSJ, "You don't need to be above Qatar to do it," he added.
Israel has killed more than 64,600 Palestinians in a brutal offensive in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and pushed the territory's population into famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the ICC for its war on the enclave.
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