The Qataris are furious, and may have hard questions for Washingtonpublished at 19:20 British Summer Time

19:20 BST

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent

Who was killed and who was injured in this strike is arguably less important than who was targeted, and what that says about the future security of the Middle East.

Israel was quick to admit it had carried out the attack, saying it was targeting Khalil al-Hayya, the chief Hamas negotiator based in Qatar.

But even before the Israeli air force struck, negotiators say that Hamas’s organisational structure in Gaza was already so depleted and scattered that it was becoming increasingly hard for its leadership in Qatar to relay decisions, taken in that tranquil Gulf state, to fugitive fighters hiding in the rubble of Gaza.

The Qataris are furious about this attack. They’ve invested huge amounts of time and effort trying to broker an end to the Gaza war, as well as the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

Their efforts have yielded some results in the past, but it’s hard to see how that can continue now, at least not on Qatari soil. Washington had advance warning of this, which could lead to reprisals against US interests in the region.

In Qatar the ruling Al-Thani family may have some hard questions for Washington, given that they host the biggest US base in the region from where all US military air operations are coordinated.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has just read out a statement from President Trump regarding Israel's strike on Doha.

Here it is in full:

This morning, the Trump administration was notified by the United States military that as Israel was attacking Hamas, which very unfortunately was located in a section of Doha, the capital of Qatar, unilaterally 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's goals.

However, eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal. President Trump immediately directed special envoy Witkoff to inform the Qataris of the impending attack, which he did. The president views Qatar as a strong ally and friend of the United States, and feels very badly about the location of this attack.

President Trump wants all of the hostages in Gaza and the bodies of the dead released in this war to end now. President Trump also spoke to Prime Minister Netanyahu after the attack. The prime minister told President Trump that he wants to make peace and quickly.

President Trump believes this unfortunate incident could serve as an opportunity for peace. The president also spoke to the emir and prime minister of Qatar and thanked them for their support and friendship to our country. He assured them that such a thing will not happen again on their soil.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

At the White House briefing, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says that Israel's strike on Doha "does not advance Israeli or American goals" - but adds that Trump believes eliminating Hamas "is a worthy goal".

Leavitt notes that Qatar is a "close ally" of the United States and that President Trump feels "very badly" about the location of the attack.

She adds that Trump is "actively and aggressively" pursuing peace.

Leavitt says that Trump spoke both with Trump and the Qatari Emir in the aftermath of the attack.

As we've just reported, six people were killed in the Israeli strike on Doha, but Hamas claims its negotiating team survived.

Hamas says among those killed was the son of the group's key negotiator, Khalil al-Hayya. It lists their names as:

• Humam Al-Hayya (Abu Yahya) - al-Hayya's son
• Jihad Labad (Abu Bilal) - director of al-Hayya's office

• Abdullah Abdul Wahid (Abu Khalil)
• Moamen Hassouna (Abu Omar)
• Ahmed Al-Mamluk (Abu Malik)

The sixth person killed, it says, was a member of Qatar's internal security forces, Corporal Badr Saad Mohammed Al-Humaidi.

We've just seen a statement from Hamas, who say their negotiating team in Doha have survived Israel's strike on the Qatari capital.

In a statement, it says: "We confirm the enemy's failure to assassinate our brothers in the negotiating delegation."

It adds the strike "confirms beyond doubt that Netanyahu and his government do not want to reach any agreement" for peace.

The statement adds that six others were killed in the strike.

"We hold the US administration jointly responsible with the occupation for this crime, due to its ongoing support for the aggression and crimes of the occupation against our people," the statement adds.

As a reminder, Hamas earlier said their negotiating delegation was targeted during its meeting in Doha after Israel said it carried out a strike on senior Hamas leaders.

Netanyahu urges Gazans to take future into their own handspublished at 18:39 British Summer Time

18:39 BST

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent, reporting from Jerusalem

Speaking to an audience at the US embassy in Jerusalem tonight, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel had accepted the proposals relayed to Israel and Hamas over the weekend.

And he urged the people of Gaza to follow suit.

“If President Trump’s proposal is accepted,” Mr Netanyahu told his audience, “the war can end immediately.”

The latest US proposals would see a ceasefire, the immediate release of all Israeli hostages and the start of negotiations on an end to the conflict.

Israel’s actions, Mr Netanyahu said, could “open the door” to a conclusion of the conflict

The prime minister urged the people of Gaza not to be “derailed” by Hamas, whose leaders lived in sumptuous villas and did not care about Gaza’s civilians.

“Stand up for your rights and for your future,” he said. “Make peace with us. Accept President Trump's proposal. Don't worry, you can do it, and we can promise you a different future.”

Having attempted to decapitate Hamas (we still don’t know the results of the operation in Doha), Mr Netanyahu is telling Gazans to take matters into their own hands.

He made a similar appeal to the people of Iran during Israel’s twelve-day assault on the regime and its nuclear programme earlier this year.

But the exhausted population of Gaza, who have seen tens of thousands of their people killed and entire cities bombed to rubble, are unlikely to respond favourably, even if they could.

Hamas maintains a military presence in the Gaza Strip, powerful enough to intimidate the local population and mount occasional guerilla attacks on Israeli soldiers.

A major escalation in regional tensionspublished at 18:36 British Summer Time

18:36 BST

Wyre Davies
Reporting from Jerusalem

It is difficult to interpret today’s dramatic events in Qatar as anything but a major escalation in regional tensions and ongoing conflicts in the region.

Only two days after Donald Trump urged Hamas leaders to seriously consider his latest ceasefire plan for Gaza, did he sanction or have any knowledge of Israel’s intention to try and assassinate that very leadership group as they met in Doha to discuss Hamas’s response to the Trump plan?

Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, posted on social media a declaration that the Qatar strike was a “wholly independent Israeli operation”.

And while the multiple bombings may indeed have been carried out by Israeli pilots flying (American made) Israeli jets with (American supplied) Israeli weapons, most analysts say it’s inconceivable that the Trump administration wasn’t asked for the green light to carry out such an audacious and risky attack.

Not only would such approval have been regarded as necessary given the predictable consequences on stability and tensions in the region, but there is a major American base with hundreds of US personnel at al-Udeid. Israeli jets would have had to fly over or near the base and risk being shot down if the Americans were not aware of their presence and intentions.

Where: Israel struck a complex in central Doha, Qatar. Israel's military said it was a "precise" attack. This is where the Hamas negotiating team is based.

When: reports of the attack came in on Tuesday afternoon.

How: it was carried out using 15 Israeli fighter jets, firing 10 munitions against a single target, Israeli media says.

Targets: there are no official names yet, but a Hamas official told the BBC members of its negotiating team were the target of the attack. Israel said it was against Hamas's "senior leadership".

Why: Israel's prime minister said it was in response to Hamas gunmen who opened fire in Jerusalem yesterday, killing six, and in retaliation of the Hamas leadership behind the 7 October 2023 attacks.

CCTV shows moment of Israeli attack in Dohapublished at 18:12 British Summer Time

18:12 BST

Image source, Telegram

By Benedict Garman and Thomas Copeland

We've just verified new CCTV video of the Israeli air strike which its military says targeted senior Hamas leaders in the Qatari capital, Doha.

The footage was filmed from a building about 260m from the blast site in the north of the city and shows one explosion followed three seconds later by another.

Thick smoke obscures any subsequent strikes, and the video has no sound, so it is unclear if there are more than two explosions.

A vertically falling munition appears to be visible before the second blast. BBC Verify is consulting with experts to see if the munition can be identified.

Netanyahu says that Gaza war can be "ended immediately" if US President Donald Trump's proposal is accepted.

"Stand up for your rights and for your future. Make peace with us, and accept President Trump’s proposal," the Israeli prime minister says in a message directed at civilians in Gaza.

On Sunday, Hamas said it welcomed "some ideas" from the US about how to reach a Gaza ceasefire agreement that it received through mediators.

Earlier in the day, Trump had posted on Truth Social: "Everyone wants the Hostages HOME. Everyone wants this War to end! The Israelis have accepted my Terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well."

"I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting. This is my last warning, there will not be another one!"

Netanyahu says this morning, Hamas "proudly took credit" for killing four Israeli soldiers in Gaza yesterday, as well as six people who were killed at a bus stop in Jerusalem.

"At noon I convened the heads of Israeli security organisations and authorised a surgical, precision strike on the terrorist chiefs of Hamas," he says.

The Israeli PM adds that on 7 October 2023, Hamas "perpetrated the worst attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust".

"At the start of war, Israel said it would reach those who perpetrated that horror. Today, Israel and I kept that promise."

There will be no immunity for Hamas leaders, he says. "The days are over when terror leaders can enjoy immunity."

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is addressing the media, stay with us as we bring you updates.

In a post on X, Israel's President Isaac Herzog says it was "important and correct" to target Hamas's leadership, and then condemns Khalil al-Hayya - Hamas's chief negotiator and exiled Gaza leader - without confirming he was a direct target of the attack.

Herzog says that al-Hayya has "the blood of thousands on his hands, one of the architects of the October 7th massacre, as are many of his colleagues".

As we've reported, a senior Israeli official tells Israeli media that al-Hayya was one of those targeted, as well as Zaher Jabarin, the exiled West Bank leader.

We do not know yet who has been injured or if anyone has been killed in the strikes.

If Trump gave the green light, he is saying his deal-making has failedpublished at 17:21 British Summer Time

17:21 BST

Jeremy Bowen
International Editor

For Israel, this is not just a war on Gaza - it's a war on Hamas wherever they are.

In the last couple of years, it has been the conventional wisdom that Israelis would not target Hamas in Qatar, over fears that would cripple the diplomatic process, which nations like the US are behind.

But if Trump gave the green light to this, the US president is also saying his famous deal-making has not worked.

Israel's justification is a "total victory" over Hamas.

Israel is going full steam ahead on all frontspublished at 17:18 British Summer Time

17:18 BST

Jeremy Bowen
International Editor

This attack is a move which many thought Israel wouldn't make.

Qatar has tried to carve out a position of the Switzerland of the Middle East. In the last few years, it has been the centre of diplomacy regarding the war in Gaza.

Today’s strike is Israel's answer to any suggestion that its latest offensive in Gaza was designed to put Hamas under pressure to accept a deal to get the hostages back quickly.

Now, it's clear that's not the case.

Israel is going full steam ahead on all fronts.

It certainly shows that Israel has given up on talks.

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent, reporting from Jerusalem

For the families of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, today’s news has triggered a fresh wave of desperate anxiety.

“I am shaking with fear,” Einav Zangauker posted on X.

Einav’s son, Matan, is among those being held.

“It could be that in these very moments the Prime Minister has actually assassinated my Matan. Why does he insist on blowing up any chance of a deal?”

We don’t yet know if any of the senior Hamas officials present in Doha survived but it’s believed that they had met for the precise purpose of discussing the latest American proposals to end the war in Gaza.

The hostage families have long accused Benjamin Netanyahu of endangering the lives of their sons, brothers and fathers. Those fears are acute tonight.

The opposition leader Yair Lapid says he shares the families’ concerns.

“Hamas members deserve death,” he posted on X, “but at this point the Israeli government needs to explain how the IDF’s action will not lead to the killing of the hostages, and whether the risk to the hostages lives was taken into account".

David Gritten
Middle East desk, BBC News website

As we have reported, a Hamas official tells us that members of their negotiation team were targeted during a meeting.

More details are now beginning to emerge.

A senior Israeli official tells Israeli media that the Hamas members targeted included Khalil al-Hayya, the chief negotiator and exiled Gaza leader, and Zaher Jabarin, the exiled West Bank leader.

"We are awaiting the results of the strike. There is a consensus among the political and security leadership," the official adds.

On Monday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz had warned Hamas leaders living abroad that they faced "annihilation" and Gaza would be destroyed if the group did not release its hostages and lay down its arms.

The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 64,605 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

We've just seen reaction from countries around the Middle East, expressing condemnation following Israel's strike on Hamas officials in the Qatari capital, Doha.

Jordan has condemned "in the strongest terms", the Israeli strike in Qatar. Its foreign ministry describes it as "a dangerous and unacceptable provocative escalation".

In similar sentiment, Kuwait has expressed "strong condemnation and denunciation" of the strike, emphasising their "full support" for the measures taken by Qatar in retaliation.

Abdullah bin Zayed, deputy prime minster of the UAE, has also strongly condemned the attack.

The Sultan of Oman, in a statement from Oman's foreign ministry, has described the strike as "a blatant breach of sovereignty".

All eyes are on Trump following strike in Dohapublished at 16:45 British Summer Time

16:45 BST

Tom Bateman
US State Department correspondent

As we reported earlier, the White House confirms to the BBC that Trump's administration was told about the Israeli strike on Doha before it happened.

Trump over the weekend had issued his “last warning” to Hamas to accept a ceasefire and hostage exchange deal.

Hamas later said it had received some ideas from the US side through mediators and was discussing ways to develop those ideas.

Assuming the Americans gave consent, tacit or otherwise (Israeli media reports Washington gave the green light), all eyes turn to what Trump does next.

This is a major escalation by Israel on the soil of the nation that for nearly two years was acting as mediator between it and Hamas.

In the face of public rage from the leadership in Doha - a key US ally - the only diplomatic track has literally been blown up and Trump will have to contain the fall out.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says Israel's strike on Doha is a "flagrant violation of international law and an escalation that threatens regional security and stability".

A statement on X on behalf of Abbas says he emphasises "the importance of an immediate halt to this escalation" and warns that its continuation "would have repercussions not only on the region but on the entire world".