U.S. President Donald Trump planned to have dinner with the Qatari prime minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, in New York on Friday, a White House official said, days after U.S. ally Israel attacked Hamas leaders in Doha.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with an attack in Qatar on Tuesday, a strike that risked derailing U.S.-backed efforts to broker a truce in Gaza and end the nearly two-year-old war. The attack was widely condemned in the Middle East and beyond as an act that could escalate tensions in a region already on edge.
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U.S. President Donald Trump and Qatari prime minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani
(Photo: Reuters/Brian Snyder)
Trump expressed annoyance about the strike in a phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and sought to assure the Qataris that such attacks would not happen again.
The official said Trump and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani will have dinner, joined by a top Trump adviser, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff.
The session follows an hour-long meeting that al-Thani had at the White House on Friday with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A source briefed on the meeting said they discussed Qatar's future as a mediator in the region and defense cooperation in the wake of the Israeli strikes against Hamas in Doha.
Trump said he was unhappy with Israel's strike, which he described as a unilateral action that did not advance U.S. or Israeli interests.
Washington counts Qatar as a strong Gulf ally. Qatar has been a main mediator in long-running negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian terror group Hamas in Gaza, for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, and for a post-war plan for the territory.
Al-Thani blamed Israel on Tuesday for trying to sabotage chances for peace, but said Qatar would not be deterred from its role as mediator.