A team of Israeli influence specialists and political advisors orchestrated a covert campaign directed at Qatar in the weeks following the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attacks, before the effort was suddenly discontinued, according to Haaretz.
Initiated shortly after the assault on southern Israel, the campaign sought to pressure Qatar over its ties with Hamas, Haaretz reported Monday.
“Their goal was to launch a global civilian influence campaign against Qatar,” the newspaper stated.
Those behind the effort believed international pressure could compel Doha to use its influence with Hamas to secure the release of 251 captives taken to Gaza on October 7.
According to the report, approximately 30 individuals were recruited, including political advisors and experts in influence operations and psychological warfare.
A WhatsApp group named Free the Kidnapped was created several days after October 7. The identities of those who initiated the operation “are barred from publication,” Haaretz said.
The newspaper described the effort as a “civilian initiative.”
However, Marc Owen Jones, associate professor at Northwestern University in Qatar, told Al Jazeera, “It is unlikely such a campaign would exist without the motivation of an actor like Israel.”
He said he has tracked a campaign against Qatar for the “past three years that sounds exactly like that.”
“I imagine it stopped either because they are pretending it is not happening or outsourced it to another entity for cover.”
Qatar has served as the key mediator between Hamas and Israel since the conflict in Gaza escalated.
Although Israeli officials have repeatedly traveled to Doha for indirect negotiations with Hamas, the Israeli military conducted a missile strike on the country on September 9 last year, targeting Hamas’s negotiating team. Six people were killed, including a Qatari national.
The episode was condemned by countries including France and the United Kingdom.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later apologized for the strike.
The following month, Israel and Hamas agreed to a “ceasefire” deal, which Israel has violated hundreds of times to date.
Since October, Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,300 Palestinians in Gaza and injured nearly 4,700.
In total, Israel has killed more than 73,700 people since October 2023, when it launched its war on the Gaza Strip.
Focusing on Qatar-Hamas relationship
Qatar has repeatedly denied allegations that it funds Hamas, pointing to strict oversight governing its aid transfers.
“All our aid, financing, and all our support … went to the people in Gaza, and was a very transparent process that the United States is very aware of … [and] Israel was the one facilitating,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Qatar’s prime minister, said last year. “This communication has led to ceasefires, has led to the release of hostages, has led to alleviating the suffering of the people over there.”
Doha, which has long served as a mediator in Middle East conflicts and beyond, has hosted Hamas’s political office since 2012. The decision to host the Hamas leadership came after a request from the United States, according to Qatari officials.
Haaretz reported that one member of the anti-Qatar WhatsApp group asked, “Do we know how much Qatar gives Hamas every year or some other monetary figure that we can hammer home?”
Another responded, “Qatar-ISIS Ltd”.
The message “Hamas is ISIS” was subsequently used on the campaign’s website and Facebook profile, the Haaretz report revealed.
Participants raised donations, produced videos, contacted journalists, and arranged media appearances as part of their secret campaign.
A website was also established in several languages, and social media accounts were opened.
Haaretz reported that a former Mossad official was also part of the group.
But about a month after it began, the campaign was abruptly halted.
“After a while, it was shut down. We stopped dealing with the Qatar campaign,” one participant told the Israeli newspaper. “I never heard anything more about the campaign.”
