Secret messages reveal Hamas’s fear of Qatar talks after Israeli assassinations

Hebrew-language Channel 13 disclosed on Saturday evening exchanged messages between the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and Hamas concerning the deadlock in negotiations to halt the war on Gaza and the issue of Israeli hostages.

According to the channel, the U.S. administration is applying pressure to resume talks, but Hamas leadership in Doha sent a message saying: “We fear meeting again in Qatar in light of ongoing Israeli threats to attempt new assassinations of the movement’s leaders.”

The strike on Doha and its impact

These messages come despite earlier Qatari assurances that any meetings of Hamas leaders would be secure, given the Israeli attack that targeted the Qatari capital on September 9, which resulted in the deaths of five second‑tier Hamas leaders — including the son of Hamas’s head in the Gaza Strip, Khalil al‑Hayya — and the killing of a Qatari security officer.

The attack halted Qatar’s role as a mediator in the talks, raising concerns within the Trump administration, which views Qatari mediation as essential to reaching an agreement that would include a ceasefire and the release of the hostages.

Qatar demands an official apology

According to the U.S. site Axios, Qatar demanded an official apology from Israel for the attack before resuming its mediation efforts. Sources said Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, raised this demand during his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Doha, and that the matter was also discussed in Rubio’s meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, and other Israeli officials.

Regional crisis and a miscalculation

The strike on Doha has deepened Israel’s regional isolation, with a senior Israeli official acknowledging that the Israeli leadership underestimated the repercussions of the strike, and saying that Netanyahu later realized he had misjudged the situation.