Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Qatar of “playing both sides,” leading a top government spokesperson in Doha to hit back, asserting that the premier’s framing of the war in Gaza as one between “civilization and barbarism” echoes the rhetoric of history’s darkest regimes.
Netanyahu tweeted from his official prime minister account, “Israel is fighting a just war with just means. After the October 7 atrocities, Prime Minister Netanyahu defined the War of Redemption as a war between civilization and barbarism.”
“The time has come for Qatar to stop playing both sides with its double talk and decide if it’s on the side of civilization or if it’s on the side of Hamas barbarism. Israel will win this just war with just means,” the premier added.
The fight on X came two days after Qatar, which serves as one of three mediators in the still-stuck hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas, accused Jerusalem of genocide during an International Court of Justice hearing.
The further escalation in tensions between Israel and Qatar also came a week after officials from both countries accused each other of sabotaging the hostage talks, though they made the allegations in briefings to the media on condition of anonymity.
Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari hit back, tweeting that Doha “firmly rejects the inflammatory statements issued by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, which fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility.”
“Portraying the ongoing aggression against Gaza as a defense of ‘civilization’ echoes the rhetoric of regimes throughout history that have used false narratives to justify crimes against innocent civilians,” al-Ansari said.
“A legitimate question must be raised: Were the releases of no fewer than 138 hostages achieved through so-called ‘just’ military operations, or through the very mediation that is now being unjustly criticized and undermined?” al-Ansari continued. Israel has argued that its military pressure was critical in coaxing Hamas to agree to hostage deals in November 2023 and January 2025.
The Qatari government spokesperson said Israel’s ongoing military offensive has sparked “one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of modern times.”
He blasted Israel’s two-month-and-counting blockade on humanitarian aid, which Jerusalem asserts is aimed at coaxing Hamas to release additional hostages. “Is this truly the model of ‘civilization’ being promoted?” al-Ansari asked.
He said Qatar will continue working with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar to secure a ceasefire and hostage deal and asserted that the only way to achieve peace in the region is through the establishment of a Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 lines.
