Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has defended the recent military action against Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, comparing it to the United States' response to the 9/11 attacks. Netanyahu stressed that nations should not harbor terrorists, and that Israel will act against those who do.
In a video message, the Israeli PM had labeled the October 7 attack as Israel's "9/11 moment" and blamed Qatar for harboring and supporting Hamas bosses. "I say to Qatar and all nations who harbour terrorists, you either expel them or you bring them to justice. Because if you don’t, we will," he said.
The attack struck Hamas' political bureau headquarters in Doha on Tuesday, during a meeting of senior members to address a US ceasefire initiative for Gaza. The raid constituted a serious escalation, targeting the territory of an American ally, and has triggered alarms about impeding attempts to close the conflict and free hostages.
Qatar denounced the attack as "cowardly" and "a flagrant violation of all international laws and norms." Doha also warned that the attack threatened "the security and safety of Qataris and residents in Qatar" in a serious way.
Netanyahu, in a video message on the 9/11 anniversary, compared America’s actions after 2001 to what Israel is doing now. “What did America do in the wake of September 11th? It promised to hunt down the terrorists who committed this heinous crime, wherever they may be. And it also passed a resolution in the UN Security Council, two weeks later, stating that governments cannot give harbour to terrorists. Well, yesterday, we acted along those lines,” he said.
He also cited US actions against Al-Qaeda, such as the assassination of Osama bin Laden. "We did exactly what America did — went after Al-Qaeda terrorists in Afghanistan and later killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan,” he added.
International criticism of the strike has been strong, but Netanyahu dismissed it as hypocritical. “Now, the various countries of the world condemn Israel. They should be ashamed of themselves,” he said.
Netanyahu also accused Qatar of bolstering Hamas by offering its leaders refuge and luxury. “It finances Hamas. It gives its terrorist chieftains sumptuous villas,” he claimed.
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