The entire Jewish world and its allies are celebrating the release of American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander, who was held by Hamas in Gaza for 584 days.
And yet, in the same breath, we are angrier than ever at Qatar, which has once again shown that it has been puppeteering Hamas all along.
On Sunday, Hamas announced its planned "unconditional" release of Edan in what was described as a "gesture" to US President Donald Trump ahead of his visit to the region on Tuesday. Edan Alexander was the last living American hostage in Hamas captivity, and the terror group – along with its financiers in Qatar, seemed to be using his US citizenship as an exploitation tactic. Media outlets reported that the agreement was made through direct talks between the United States and Hamas.
The following day, late Monday morning, Hamas confirmed it would release Edan later that evening. This announcement was immediately followed by reports that the United States was considering flying Edan Alexander and his family to Qatar to meet with Trump and the emir during the president's visit. These reports, later confirmed by the Alexander family, stated that Edan would travel with US Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, though they clarified the decision would ultimately be Edan's and dependent on his health. On Tuesday it was determined that he would not travel after all.
The last thing anyone held hostage for 19 months should be asked to do is travel to the country that funded his captors. Edan Alexander needs trauma therapy, medical care, and time with his family, not a flight to Qatar to be paraded in front of cameras alongside Trump and the emir. In an effort to avoid angering Trump, Hamas did not subject Edan to the humiliating hostage release ceremony it inflicted on the other Israeli hostages. While Edan was not paraded on a stage, Hamas still managed to capture a photo of him before handing him over to the Red Cross. In that image stands a young, 21-year-old Jewish boy between armed terrorists and humanitarian workers – a more polished version of Hamas' ongoing propaganda campaign.
And which outlet released the photo? None other than Al-Jazeera, the Qatari state-sponsored propaganda outlet, which not only aligns with Hamas but has reportedly employed Hamas operatives posing as "journalists" while harboring Israeli hostages in their homes.
Qatar has long been a major financial and political supporter of Hamas, transferring more than $1.8 billion to the group over the years. According to a Qatari official interviewed by Der Spiegel in 2023, Qatar was transferring $30 million to Hamas every month.
Qatar hasn't just financed Hamas, it has also sheltered its leadership. Many senior Hamas officials, including Ismail Haniyeh (who was later eliminated by Israel in Tehran) and Khaled Mashal, have been based in Doha. Qatar has provided them with safe haven and a global platform.
What we saw with Alexander's release is that Qatar has had the power all along to influence Hamas. They demanded the release of the final living American captive, and Hamas complied. In late April, Israeli media reported that Qatar had persuaded Hamas to reject an Egyptian hostage deal, advising the terror group to hold out for a better offer. This proves that Qatar could have pressured Hamas to release the hostages long ago. I only wish they had done so before Hersh Goldberg-Polin and others were murdered.
Now, with Qatar's latest "gift" to President Trump, many are justifiably concerned that the Gulf state's influence over American politics runs far deeper than we previously thought. CNN, the BBC, and other major outlets have reported that the Trump administration is set to receive a $400 million Qatari jet to replace an Air Force One. Regardless of the justification, America should not be accepting gifts from a corrupt Islamist regime that sponsors Hamas, the Taliban, Al-Qaida, and others. Qatar has already bought off some of America's most elite institutions. Accepting a gift like this only reinforces the image of a weak and compromised United States.
The irony is staggering. So many anti-Israel activists scapegoat lobby groups like AIPAC or blame America's problems on "Jewish money," yet they remain completely silent now.
Nobody is fooled. The Qataris may have brokered Alexander's release, but they are the ones who financed his abduction. Qatar positions itself as a mediator and defends its support for Hamas under the guise of regional diplomacy. The truth is far more sinister: they are legitimizing, empowering, and sustaining terrorism.
For them to even suggest that Alexander visit is insulting. It's not diplomacy, it's theater.
Qatar is not a hero in this story. They are the villain dressed as a savior, exploiting the very trauma they helped create. They didn't free Alexander out of compassion or diplomacy. They released him as a calculated political move, using a 21-year-old Jewish-American boy as a bargaining chip to buy influence, launder their image, and curry favor with a visiting US president.
