On September 9, Israel launched 15 fighter jets from the Red Sea, firing 10 ballistic missiles at Hamas’s political offices in Doha. The United States gave no prior warning, and American air-defense systems at Al-Udeid Air Base—home to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM)—remained silent. For Qatar, the episode raised serious doubts about the value of hosting a major U.S. base and the reliability of Washington’s defense commitments.
This is not the first time America has shaken Doha’s confidence. In 2017, during Trump’s first term, Qatar was blockaded by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and Bahrain, accused of backing terrorism and Iran. Rather than defending Doha, some U.S. officials tacitly supported the blockade. Similar doubts resurfaced in 2019 when the U.S. failed to respond decisively to missile and drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities, widely blamed on Iran.
Hoping to avoid a repeat, Qatar courted Trump directly ahead of his 2024 election victory—lavishing investments, gifting a $400 million Boeing 747 for conversion into Air Force One, pledging $10 billion to expand Al-Udeid, and ordering 160 Boeing passenger jets worth $96 billion. For a time, the strategy seemed to work, with Trump repeatedly praising Qatar and Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
But Israel’s latest strike shattered that illusion. For many analysts, the U.S. decision not to intercept the missiles exposed a harsh truth: neither hosting U.S. troops nor currying favor with Trump guarantees Qatar’s security when Israeli interests are at stake. Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani openly voiced a sense of “betrayal,” noting that U.S.-made defense systems had failed to detect or stop the attack.
American officials downplayed the incident, claiming the strike was unforeseeable. Yet observers argue CENTCOM had time to act but chose restraint. Washington offered only muted criticism of Israel at the UN, without sanctions or deterrent measures.
The attack underscores Qatar’s risky strategy of relying more on diplomacy and mediation than on building independent defenses. By positioning itself as an indispensable regional broker, Doha hoped to secure U.S. protection by default. Instead, the latest crisis has left Qatar scrambling: preparing legal action against Israel, rallying allies to condemn the strike, and reaffirming ties with Washington to avoid a deeper rift.
Analysts warn that while these steps may bring short-term stability, the core vulnerabilities remain. The Israeli strike normalized the idea that even U.S. allies like Qatar are not immune from regional conflict—and that America’s security umbrella is far from absolute.
“Qatar’s efforts to win Trump’s favor did not buy the safety it expected,” said Ali Bakir of Qatar University. “Now it faces a future in which it must navigate regional dangers largely on its own.”