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Contradictory narratives have emerged over whether Israel provided advance warning to the Trump administration before conducting airstrikes targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar's capital last week, raising questions about coordination between the two allies during a sensitive diplomatic moment.
Seven Israeli officials told Axios that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed President Donald Trump of the planned attack during a phone call around 8 a.m. Washington time last Tuesday, nearly an hour before the first explosions were reported in Doha at 8:51 a.m.
The Israeli account directly contradicts the White House's public position that it learned of the strike only after missiles were already airborne, leaving no opportunity for Trump to intervene.
"Trump knew about the strike before the missiles were launched," a senior Israeli official said. "If Trump had wanted to stop it, he could have. In practice, he didn't."
The discrepancy has created diplomatic complications as Secretary of State Marco Rubio travels to Doha on Tuesday for talks with Qatari officials, whose government has disputed even receiving timely warning from Washington.
Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said on social media platform X that "statements circulating about Qatar being informed of the attack in advance are false," adding that a call from an American official came only "as explosions sounded from the Israeli attack in Doha."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt maintained that Trump "immediately directed Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to inform the Qataris of the impending attack, which he did" after being notified by the U.S. military of Israeli jets in the air.
The timing dispute comes as the strike has strained multiple relationships. Qatar, a key U.S. ally in the Gulf, has served as a crucial mediator in Gaza ceasefire negotiations and hosts a major American military base. The Hamas leaders were reportedly meeting to discuss Trump's latest Gaza peace proposal when the attack occurred.
One Israeli official suggested their government agreed to support the White House's version of events "for the sake of the U.S.-Israel relationship," while another said the Americans were "putting on a show."
The Israeli military operation, dubbed "Operation Summit of Fire," targeted senior Hamas figures including Gaza chief Khalil al-Hayya and Zaher Jabareen. Five Hamas members and one Qatari security officer were killed, though Hamas reported its top leaders survived after leaving the building shortly before the strikes.
Israel has maintained the operation was entirely unilateral. "Today's action against the top terrorist chieftains of Hamas was a wholly independent Israeli operation," Netanyahu's office stated, with the prime minister taking "full responsibility."
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