ISRAEL’S attack in Doha on 9th September 2025 has laid bare the vulnerabilities of the Gulf States and the West Asia region.
The global reaction to an unrestrainable Israel, including that of the United States, has raised hopes of the Palestinian State rising from the ashes of Gaza. In the midst of all this confusion, half-truths and broken promises reign supreme.
The oil-rich states of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE may be wealthy and have U.S. support and a security umbrella, but they remain at risk, especially with the rising belligerence of Israel. The skies over Doha on September 9th, 2025, carried a vivid message for the rest: no Arab State is beyond Israel’s reach, and the shield of American military power means little — in fact, nothing.
The real loss, however, is that of the United States. Its inability to restrain Israel has weakened Washington’s credibility and shaken the trust of some of its staunchest allies. Skepticism is growing. Israel may have expanded its operational boundaries, but the popular perception is that the U.S. has lost control. The question now is simple yet troubling: who is calling the shots? And more importantly, is the American alliance a shield, or an illusion? President Trump’s assurance that “it will not happen again” rings hollow, a familiar echo in a region accustomed to unmet promises.
The global response has been broadly unanimous, with widespread condemnation of Israeli aggression against Qatari sovereignty. Yet this is more than an attack on a capital city. It is an assault on the reliability of U.S. security guarantees. For decades, Gulf leaders have provided basing rights and aligned strategically with Washington in exchange for protection. The Al Udeid base in Qatar symbolized that trade-off. Iran’s strike on the same base in June 2025, followed by Israel’s attack in September 2025, demonstrates just how fragile that arrangement has become and the dichotomy within it. The Qatari base was attacked both by the enemy of Israel, ‘Iran,’ and by Israel itself. The perception now overshadows reality: the U.S. appears either unwilling or unable to interdict Israel. Neither scenario sits well with the Gulf. Qatar has refrained from directly blaming Washington, but its categorical condemnation of Israel raises the question: does this distinction exist?
The events of the past two years have completely shattered the premise of the “Abraham Accords.” Arab-Israel cooperation is now a distant phenomenon. The Israel-Palestine conflict is not sidelined; it is at the heart of the Gulf’s calculus. Beyond elite corridors, the Arab street continues to stand overwhelmingly with the Palestinian cause. Israeli actions in Gaza and beyond inflame tangible anger across societies.
The latest strike also signals a dangerous shift in Israel’s own calculus. Hostages in Gaza are now seen as dispensable, collateral in a larger pursuit: the consolidation of occupation, demographic engineering through annihilation, and the expulsion of those who remain. Israel’s leaders appear unmoved by the humanitarian costs of its actions. Qatar’s Prime Minister told the emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on September 12th, 2025, that such actions betray the very principles of international diplomacy, as global powers lined up to condemn the strike. Pakistan’s Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmed posed the critical question: “Was the return of hostages ever a priority for Israel?”
The United Nations has become the new theatre of this conflict. Pakistan, along with Algeria and Somalia, called for an emergency session of the Security Council, framing the Israeli attack as a violation not just of Qatari sovereignty but of the very foundations of international law. The Council issued a condemnation of the strikes, though conspicuously avoided naming Israel. This equivocation exposes the UN’s dilemma: strong in words, weak in action. Within the chamber, Pakistan and Israel traded sharp barbs. Islamabad underscored that such aggression undermines mediation and peace efforts, while Tel Aviv defended its actions as counterterrorism. “In our view it is unacceptable, indeed ludicrous, for an aggressor, an occupier, and a serial violator of the UN Charter and international law — that is Israel — to abuse this chamber and disrespect the sanctity of this Council, and this is not for the first time,” said Pakistan’s Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad. The episode underlines the crisis of multilateralism: when principles collide with power politics, accountability falters.
The war that began on October 7, 2023, has already killed over 60,000 Palestinians and injured more than 161,000 in Gaza, along with around 700 in the West Bank. According to a report in The Guardian, the actual death toll is 40% higher than the official number. These staggering figures haunt every diplomatic chamber, fueling anger on the Arab street and constraining the manoeuvrability of regional regimes. It is no longer possible to pursue normalization with Israel while Palestinian suffering escalates at such a scale. The Israeli strike on Doha has driven this truth home with brutal clarity.
The elephant in the room is “who will restrain Israel?” All condemn, including China, which offers alternatives to the U.S. on the economic front but no real options geopolitically. Russia is thoroughly enjoying Israeli belligerence, as it emboldens its own designs for Ukraine. A confused Europe is struggling with its own internal fractures and turmoil. A very dangerous world indeed. Many questions, but no real answers.
Israel’s strike on Doha has shattered illusions not only of security umbrellas and normalization agreements but also of the credibility of global governance itself. The attack is not just a regional crisis; it is a test of international order, one that the world seems ill-prepared to meet.
An emboldened Netanyahu declared, “There will be no Palestinian State.” And yet, in an extraordinary development, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly backed a resolution reviving a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine less than 24 hours after Netanyahu’s rejection. The “New York Declaration,” adopted on 12th September 2025, outlines “tangible, time-bound, and irreversible steps” toward a two-state solution. It passed with 142 votes in favor, 10 against including Israel and its key ally, the United States and 12 abstentions. The vote reflects a rare global consensus, even as the gap between international will and political realities on the ground grows ever wider. Subtraction of Hamas from any future framework of the Palestinian state is becoming crystallized. Israel is hated, but Hamas has also outlived its welcome in some ways.
The operational dynamics of the attack on the Qatar base, particularly the involvement of British and American refuelling aircraft positioned east of Qatar, coupled with the utilization of Jordanian, Syrian, Iraqi, and Saudi airspaces, reflect a clear web of complicity.
