Diplomatic tensions in the Middle East have reached a fever pitch this week, as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) took the rare step of summoning Israel’s ambassador and deputy ambassador to protest Israel’s recent airstrike on Hamas leaders in Qatar. The move, which unfolded on Friday, September 12, 2025, marks a significant escalation in the already fraught relationship between the two countries, and comes as regional leaders scramble to contain the fallout from the strike and its implications for wider peace efforts.
The controversy began earlier in the week, when Israeli warplanes launched a targeted attack in the Qatari capital of Doha, aiming at senior figures within Hamas—a group long considered a terrorist organization by Israel and several Western states. According to The Times of Israel and state news agency WAM, the airstrike killed at least five lower-ranking Hamas members and a member of the Qatari security forces, but Hamas reported that its top leaders survived the assault. Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas leader, attended funeral prayers in Qatar after what Hamas described as "special security arrangements."
The Israeli government, for its part, defended the operation. In a statement released by the Israeli Embassy in the UAE, officials asserted that the strike targeted “senior Hamas leadership who have used Qatar as a base from which to wage war on Israel.” The embassy added, “Israel is committed to defeating terrorism and ending Hamas’ reign of terror, bringing our hostages home and securing a safer future for Israelis and our collective region.”
But the Emirati response was swift and unequivocal. Reem bint Ebrahim al-Hashimy, the UAE’s Minister of State for International Cooperation, summoned both Ambassador Yossi Shelley and Deputy Ambassador David Ohad Horsandi for what was described as a reprimand and clarification meeting. Al-Hashimy “denounced the blatant and cowardly Israeli attack” on Qatar, calling it “an irresponsible escalation that threatens regional and international peace and security.” She also condemned what she termed as “hostile and aggressive statements” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had warned Qatar to expel Hamas officials or “bring them to justice, because if you don’t, we will.”
Netanyahu went further, drawing a controversial parallel between Israel’s actions in Doha and the U.S. pursuit of Al Qaeda following the September 11, 2001 attacks. Qatar immediately rejected this comparison, describing it as “a new, miserable justification for Israel’s treacherous practices” and a reckless violation of its sovereignty. According to Al Jazeera and other regional outlets, Qatari officials saw the strike as a grave breach of international law and the UN Charter.
For the UAE, the timing and location of the Israeli strike were especially sensitive. Qatar has been a key mediator in ongoing negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire and the release of hostages in the Gaza conflict—a war that, according to Qatari authorities, has resulted in the deaths of over 64,700 Palestinians since October 2023. The attack in Doha occurred while Hamas’s negotiating team was reportedly deliberating over a comprehensive deal proposal from U.S. President Donald Trump. The UAE’s Foreign Ministry described the strike as a “flagrant violation of Qatar’s sovereignty” and a “grave breach of international law.”
But the airstrike and its immediate fallout are just the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the surface, a much deeper rift has been growing between Abu Dhabi and Jerusalem, centered on the increasingly contentious issue of potential Israeli annexation of West Bank territory. During Friday’s meeting, Emirati officials made it clear that any move by Israel to annex parts of the West Bank would “seriously jeopardize the UAE’s ability to maintain ties with Israel.” As Reem al-Hashimy reportedly warned, “Do not take us for granted, and do not assume we will absorb everything without response.”
This warning did not come out of the blue. For weeks, Israeli leaders have been engaged in heated internal debates about how to respond to France’s growing recognition of a Palestinian state, with some factions in Israel pushing for annexation of parts of the West Bank. Earlier this month, the UAE issued a public warning—delivered to Reuters by Lana Nusseibeh, assistant minister for political affairs and special envoy to the UAE foreign minister—stating that annexation would cross a “red line” and severely damage the Abraham Accords, the 2020 agreement that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states, including the UAE. This public rebuke followed a series of private warnings from Abu Dhabi, which Emirati officials said had gone largely ignored by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.
The diplomatic drama played out against a backdrop of mounting regional anxiety. UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan toured Gulf Arab countries this week, seeking to coordinate a unified response from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members. The UAE also reportedly considered a Qatari request to close its embassy in Tel Aviv in response to the Doha strike, a move that would signal a dramatic downturn in bilateral relations.
The crisis has also drawn in other international actors. Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, traveled to Washington for talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after addressing the United Nations Security Council. In his remarks to the Security Council, Sheikh Mohammed accused Israel of “trying to rearrange the region by force.” The U.S., Egypt, and Qatar have all played central roles in mediating the Gaza conflict, but the Israeli airstrike has threatened to derail these delicate negotiations.
The diplomatic fallout is far from over. Doha is set to host an emergency Arab-Islamic summit on Sunday and Monday, September 14 and 15, 2025, to discuss the Israeli attack and its broader implications for regional stability. According to sources cited by The Times of Israel, the UAE is eager to resolve the crisis but remains adamant that Israel must respect the sovereignty of its neighbors and refrain from further escalations—both in Qatar and in the West Bank.
As for Israel, Ambassador Yossi Shelley defended his country’s actions by arguing that, after 700 days of war and with hostages still in captivity, “there is never a convenient time for such actions.” He echoed Netanyahu’s message that the Hamas leaders targeted in the Doha strike were those responsible for orchestrating and celebrating the October 7 massacre in Israel.
Yet, for many in the Gulf, Israel’s recent moves have crossed a line. The UAE’s strong condemnation, coupled with the threat of downgrading diplomatic ties, marks a turning point in the Abraham Accords era. Whether this crisis can be defused—or whether it will spiral into a broader rupture—remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the region is on edge, and the world is watching closely as leaders in Abu Dhabi, Jerusalem, and Doha weigh their next steps.