As a young Qatari, I never imagined I would write about Israel attacking Qatar. Yet here we are.

On September 9, Israel launched an attack on Doha. The attack targeted Hamas and struck residential neighbourhood just steps away from schools, nurseries and embassies.

During this attack, a Qatari officer serving in the Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya) was killed, and our sovereignty was violated.

This was not, as some might think,  just a simple “attack on Hamas”. It was also an attack on my beloved country, Qatar, and on diplomacy itself.

Most importantly, it was an attack on the principle that mediators have the right to remain neutral in times of war and conflict.

Israel has sent us a clear message by striking Doha. It has shown us that no place is off limits, no mediator is safe no matter the good they do and, above all, no law is being respected. 

International law prohibits the use of force against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, as stated in the UN Charter, Article 2(4).

The Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol I require distinction and proportionality, and they require effective advance warning of attacks that may affect the civilian population, unless circumstances do not permit (AP I, art. 57(2)(c)).

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations guarantees the protection and safety of embassies and diplomats. Israel has violated all of these in this attack, just one in a long series of violations.

You might be wondering why Qatar was targeted. The answer is simple: because it is a mediator. We are not a country at war. We have no occupation forces. We are not firing missiles or launching fighter jets.

Instead, we open our country as a negotiation table for ceasefire talks, humanitarian agreements, and to serve as a bridge between opposing parties. Israel fears this role because diplomacy challenges its narrative of endless war.

We should not see what happened in Doha as isolated. It is part of a wider chain of events: from Gaza, where tens of thousands of innocent people children with dreams, families with hope have been killed, in what the International Court of Justice found presents a plausible risk of genocide, ordering provisional measures to prevent it; to Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and even Tehran, where strikes have been carried out with impunity.

Now Qatar has joined that list not because we are enemies, but because we declared ourselves peaceful, open to mediation, and committed to global security.

As a young Qatari who believes in the power of diplomacy, I cannot stay silent. My beloved country has been attacked for standing on the side of peace.

As Archbishop Desmond Tutu once said: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor”.

We Arabs, Muslims, and the international community must wake up to the reality that international law means nothing if it is not enforced.

Israel has continued to show us that it will keep killing innocent people, destroying cities, and shattering the dreams of youth. And now it even strikes at mediators who seek peace a world where people are safe, secure, and free from conflict.

As long as it has political cover and the green light from Washington, Israel acts as though it has immunity. But history teaches us: immunity does not last forever, and truth always reveals itself.

Qatar will not be intimidated by this attack. We, as youth, will continue to raise our voices for Palestine, for diplomacy, and for international law. Because striking mediation means striking peace. And if international law is ignored, no state will be safe.

Mubarak Al Naimi is a Qatari student at Northwestern University in Qatar, majoring in Communications with a focus on politics and diplomacy. He is passionate about international law, mediation, and the role of youth in global diplomacy.

This article is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the views of Doha News, its editorial board, or staff.