Former Israeli PM Bennett says he would immediately designate Qatar an ‘enemy state’

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett says he would “immediately” designate Qatar an “enemy state” if he returns to office. In a post on X, Bennett described Qatar as a “hostile” and “antisemitic” state, accusing it of building a global network of influence that, he claimed, extends into Western countries and even the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office. Bennett also alleged that, during his time as prime minister, he had seen intelligence indicating that Qatar had provided financial support to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). He further accused Doha of funding Hamas and using the Al Jazeera network and American universities to incite hostility against Israel. Relations between Israel and Qatar deteriorated sharply after Israel struck a Hamas office in Qatar in September 2025. A Qatari security officer and several Hamas members were killed in the attack, while Hamas leaders survived. Israeli officials initially defended the operation. However, the White House later said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a three-way call with US President Donald Trump and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, expressed regret over the death of the Qatari officer and the violation of Qatar’s sovereignty, and assured that Israel would not carry out a similar strike in the future.