US President Donald Trump on Tuesday issued a rare rebuke to Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel\u2019s strikes in Qatar, emphasizing that he had no involvement in the attack carried out by one close US ally against another. Trump said he was not notified in advance of the Israeli attack on the Gulf state, a crucial broker in the negotiations between Israel and Hamas on ending the Gaza war and securing the release of hostages held by Palestinian militants. \u201cI\u2019m not thrilled about the whole situation,\u201d Trump told reporters during a rare outing to a Washington restaurant. \u201cWe want the hostages back, but we are not thrilled about the way that went down today.\u201d The Israeli attack on Doha could hardly be more sensitive as Qatar, in addition to its role in the Gaza negotiations. Is home to a huge US airbase and hosted Trump during a Middle East swing this year. The fuel-rich emirate also recently gave the United States a luxury Boeing 747-8 jet for Trump to use as his presidential plane. A move that sparked major ethical questions. \u201cThis was a decision made by Prime Minister Netanyahu, it was not a decision made by me,\u201d Trump said in a post on social media. \u201cI view Qatar as a strong Ally and friend of the U.S., and feel very badly about the location of the attack,\u201d he said \u2014 although adding that eliminating Hamas was still a \u201cworthy goal.\u201d In a statement that largely echoed one issued earlier by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Trump focused on the possible damage to his efforts to end the war in Gaza. \u201cUnilaterally bombing inside Qatar, a Sovereign Nation and close Ally of the United States. That is working very hard and bravely taking risks with us to broker Peace, does not advance Israel or America\u2019s goals,\u201d Trump said. \u2018Too late\u2019 The US president was at pains to point out that Washington was caught unawares by the Israeli attack. He said the White House was \u201cnotified by the United States Military that Israel was attacking Hamas which, very unfortunately, was located in a section of Doha.\u201d \u201cI immediately directed Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to inform the Qataris of the impending attack, which he did, however, unfortunately, too late to stop the attack.\u201d Trump said he had spoken to Netanyahu in the aftermath, and tried to put a positive gloss on the affair. \u201cThe Prime Minister told me that he wants to make Peace. I believe this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for PEACE,\u201d he said. Leavitt told reporters earlier that Trump had given Netanyahu a \u201cvery clear\u201d message about his \u201cconcerns.\u201d Trump\u2019s rebuke of Netanyahu was uncommon, as the US president has given the Israeli leader almost unstinting backing since returning to the Oval Office in January. Israel\u2019s ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter said in a Fox News interview Tuesday that the United States and Israel were \u201cunited in the effort of eliminating Hamas as being a threat to peace in the Middle East.\u201d \u201cWe have acted together in the past, we\u2019ll act together in the future,\u201d Leiter added. As Qatar complained about the attack, Trump said he had now directed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to finalize a defense cooperation agreement with Doha. Trump added that he had assured Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in a phone call that \u201csuch a thing will not happen again on their soil.\u201d Doha had earlier insisted it had no warning of the attack. \u201cThe call received from an American official came as explosions sounded from the Israeli attack in Doha,\u201d . Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said on social media. Qatar has once again found itself caught in the crossfire of the turmoil in the Middle East. Iran fired missiles at the US Al Udeid airbase in June in retaliation for US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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