Trump administration issues executive order pledging to defend Qatar

The Trump administration has signed an executive order committing to guarantee Qatar’s security, including the possibility of military action, if the country were ever attacked, the New York Times reports.

Dated September 29, 2025, the order comes three weeks after Israel conducted airstrikes targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar, an operation that sparked outrage among both Qatari and U.S. officials and raised concerns over the reliability of American security assurances for the Gulf nation.

The executive order appears designed to reassure Qatar that such attacks would not recur. It states that any aggression against Qatar would be regarded as “a threat to the peace and security of the United States.”

Qatar hosts the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East and, like other Gulf states, has historically relied on the United States as a key security guarantor. This context made Israel’s recent strikes, despite its close alliance with the U.S., particularly shocking to Qatari authorities.

According to the order, if Qatar were attacked, the United States would “take all lawful and appropriate measures — including diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military — to defend the interests of the United States and of the State of Qatar.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the September airstrikes, describing them as part of Israel’s ongoing mission to avenge the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, which killed approximately 1,200 people and ignited the Gaza war. Netanyahu accused the Qatari government of providing a “safe haven” to Hamas.

Despite the tension, Israel has maintained informal ties with Qatar, which has acted as a mediator alongside Egypt in efforts to end the Gaza conflict.

Hamas reported that no senior leaders were killed in the Doha attack. The casualties included the son of Khalil al-Hayya, a top figure involved in planning the October 2023 attack, four other individuals associated with Hamas, and a member of Qatar’s internal security forces, Cpl. Bader Saad al-Humaidi al-Dosari.

Following the strikes, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani condemned the attack as “state terror,” emphasising that his government hosts Hamas officials at the request of the United States to maintain communication channels with the group.

On September 29, Netanyahu’s office confirmed a phone conversation with Sheikh Mohammed, during which he expressed regret over the death of a Qatari security officer and stated that Israel did not intend to violate Qatar’s sovereignty again. The Qatari foreign ministry confirmed that Netanyahu apologised for the attack during the call.

The executive order instructs the U.S. Secretary of Defence to collaborate with other senior officials to “maintain joint contingency planning with the State of Qatar to ensure a rapid and coordinated response to any foreign aggression against the State of Qatar.”

The September strikes were not the only recent threat to Qatar. In June, Iran launched missiles targeting the U.S. military base in the country, citing American strikes on its nuclear infrastructure as justification.

Qatar was one of three Arab nations visited by Trump during a regional tour in May, and recently donated a 747 jetliner to the United States, which Trump has indicated he intends to use as a replacement for Air Force One.

By Tamilla Hasanova