Desk Report:
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has arrived in Israel, where he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His visit comes at a time when tensions in the Middle East have escalated, especially after Israel launched attacks on at least six countries, including Qatar, in the space of just 72 hours.
Ahead of Rubio’s visit, which begins on Sunday, US President Donald Trump criticized Israel for its unexpected attack on Hamas leaders in the Qatari capital Doha, according to Qatar-based media outlet Al-Jazeera.
Before leaving for Israel, Rubio told reporters that Trump was “not happy” with the attack, but that it “will not change the nature of our relationship with Israel.” However, he added that the US and Israel would discuss how the attack would affect talks to end the fighting in Gaza.
“The president wants this to end, and ending it means releasing 48 prisoners at once. Hamas is no longer a threat, so we can move on to the next step—making sure that. And the next step is how do we rebuild Gaza?”
He added, “How do we ensure security (in Gaza)? How do we ensure that Hamas doesn’t come back? That’s the president’s priority…and as part of this trip, we will discuss how the events in Qatar last week are affecting that process.” Rubio said who will do it, who will pay for it, who will take ownership of the process—has not yet been decided.
The Israeli attack on Qatar, one of the US allies in the Middle East, targeted Hamas leaders. The leaders were meeting to discuss a new deal to end the war in Gaza. The attack killed six people, including a Qatari security official, while the top leadership survived.
U.S. officials described it as a “unilateral escalation.” They say the attack is not in the interests of the US or Israel. Al Jazeera’s Rosiland Jordan, reporting from Washington, DC, said the US and Qatar have exchanged pledges to continue their efforts to make peace.
“But late Saturday night, Netanyahu said on social media that Israel’s view is that the Hamas leadership needs to be expelled from Qatar because, according to Israel, Hamas is not committed to peace.” She added that Rubio’s visit to Israel will “have some discussion about the next steps,” especially since Trump has said he wants to see an end to the war in Gaza.
Hamas has repeatedly said it is willing to release all prisoners taken by Israel and hand over control of Gaza to an interim administration, provided the war ends and Israeli forces withdraw completely from Gaza.
