Israel has dramatically expanded its military campaign in the Middle East by launching an airstrike in Qatar, killing five Hamas members and sparking an international backlash.
The strike, which rocked Doha on Tuesday, reportedly targeted Hamas’ senior political figures based in the Qatari capital. Among the dead was the son of exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator Khalil al-Hayya. Hamas claimed Israel had attempted to assassinate its ceasefire negotiation team but insisted its top leadership survived.
Footage verified by Reuters showed a huge explosion in central Doha. Despite the blast, Hamas officials confirmed that negotiators involved in ceasefire talks were unharmed.
The White House condemned Israel’s decision to carry out an attack inside Qatar, a close US ally and key mediator in Gaza truce talks. Spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said, “Unilaterally bombing inside Qatar does not advance Israel or America’s goals. However, eliminating Hamas is a worthy goal.”
She confirmed that President Donald Trump was informed shortly before the strike and spoke with the Jewish state Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu afterwards. Trump visited Qatar in May, staying just two kilometres from the attack site.
Qatar denounced the airstrike as a “cowardly” act and accused Israel of flagrantly violating international law. The attack threatens to derail ongoing peace efforts, which Doha has been mediating alongside Egypt.
The Jewish state officials confirmed the strike targeted senior Hamas leaders, though it remains unclear whether any top figures were killed. The attack came hours after Israel ordered the evacuation of Gaza City as part of its wider offensive to dismantle Hamas’ military infrastructure.
With Qatar’s role as mediator now in jeopardy, the strike risks deepening the region’s instability and undermining fragile ceasefire negotiations.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
