Doha: Khalil al-Hayya walked out alive from an Israeli strike that turned skies of the Qatari capital of Doha into fireplace, however the Hamas veteran misplaced his son and aide within the assault that has surprised the Arab world. Three of his bodyguards are nonetheless lacking.
The senior Hamas chief has carried the scars of struggle for many years. Born in 1960 in Gaza Metropolis’s Sejaiyeh quarter, al-Hayya joined the militant group when it was based in 1987 and has remained a part of its management ever since.
His private losses run deep. In 2007, an Israeli raid on his household house killed a number of of his kin. In 2014, one other bombardment killed his eldest son Osama, Osama’s spouse and three of their kids.
Years later, al-Hayya relocated to Doha, the place he rose as one among Hamas’s most influential leaders overseas. After the assassinations of Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar final yr, he grew to become the group’s chief negotiator and the exiled head of Gaza affairs, tasked with main ceasefire talks and connecting Hamas with Arab and Islamic capitals.
That prominence made him a first-rate goal. In line with Hamas officers, the delegation in Doha was reviewing Donald Trump’s newest ceasefire proposal when Israeli warplanes struck.
Suhail al-Hindi of Hamas’s political bureau confirmed the assassination try failed. “The blood of the management of the motion is just like the blood of any Palestinian little one,” he advised Al Jazeera.
Israel’s Increasing Conflict Map
The Doha raid suits into Israel’s widening regional offensive. Tel Aviv has struck six Arab states up to now one month. Gaza stays beneath each day bombardment. Southern Lebanon, Syria and Yemen have all come beneath fireplace. In Tunisia, a Gaza-bound humanitarian flotilla was struck by a suspected Israeli drone.
The listing of Hamas leaders assassinated continues to develop. Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of the group, was killed in Beirut in January. Marwan Issa, deputy commander of the Qassam Brigades, died in a Gaza strike in March. Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran in July, final yr. By October, Yahya Sinwar was additionally lifeless, eradicated in southern Gaza.
In Doha, a number of explosions ripped by way of the capital close to embassies. Israel later confirmed it had focused Hamas officers.
Qatar’s International Ministry condemned the raid as “a flagrant violation of all worldwide legal guidelines and norms and a severe risk to the safety and security of Qataris and residents of Qatar”.
‘Absolutely Justified’
In Israel, leaders described the strike as successful. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich known as it the “appropriate choice”, declaring that “terrorists haven’t any and may have no immunity from the lengthy arm of Israel anyplace on this planet”.
Opposition chief Yair Lapid congratulated the nation’s safety forces for “an distinctive operation to thwart our enemies”.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s workplace acknowledged, “At present’s motion towards the highest terrorist chieftains of Hamas was a completely impartial Israeli operation. Israel initiated it, Israel carried out it and Israel takes full accountability.”
Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Israel Katz defended the airstrike, insisting it was “totally justified”. “The prime minister and defence minister imagine the operation was completely justified, on condition that this Hamas management deliberate and executed the October 7 bloodbath and continues to direct murderous assaults on Israel and its residents,” the 2 leaders stated in a joint assertion, linking the assault to Monday’s East Jerusalem taking pictures that left six Israelis lifeless.
However the strike, which hit a residential neighbourhood within the Qatari capital, raises authorized alarms. Analysts state it seems to breach key provisions of worldwide legislation, together with the UN Constitution’s ban on aggression towards sovereign states.
Israeli parliament speaker Amir Ohana posted video of the strike, captioned in Arabic: “This can be a message for all the Center East.”
Qatar’s Inside Ministry confirmed that the blasts had hit “a Hamas residential headquarters” and urged residents to stay calm. Officers stated the state of affairs was beneath management.