Senior Al-Jazeera Presenter: Moral Hamas Did Not Booby-Trap The Hostages

Following the June 8, 2024 operation in the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza, in which Israeli special forces rescued four hostages who had been taken captive by Hamas on October 7, 2023, various reports in the Qatari media and responses by Qatari media figures echoed Hamas's narratives, further demonstrating Qatar's solidarity with the Hamas terror group despite its role as a mediator in Hamas' negotiations with Israel.[1]

A prominent example are tweets shared by Jamal Rayyan, a senior presenter for Qatar's Al-Jazeera Network, who praised Hamas, writing: "The morality of the resistance prevented it from booby-trapping the prisoners." Another prominent Qatari journalist, Jabel Al-Harmi, the editor-in-chief of the Al-Sharq daily, likewise praised Hamas for not killing the hostages during the rescue operation.

These expressions of praise come alongside reports in Qatari journals that presented the hostage rescue operation as a "barbaric massacre" in the refugee camp, sometimes entirely omitting the fact that its objective was to rescue hostages.

It should be noted that Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a recent press conference: "Qatar's commitment to the negotiation efforts will continue as long as it is possible to end the crisis and suffering of the civilians, to return them to their homes and to rehabilitate the Gaza Strip, in a manner that will meet the demands of the Palestinian people." Al-Ansari too neglected to mention the Israeli hostages held by Hamas. It should further be noted that in 2021, after the round of fighting between Israel and Hamas that took place in May of that year, Al-Ansari himself published an article praising Hamas for having fired "3000 rockets in 10 days" and for defeating the "Zionist enemy."[2]

This report will present examples of Qatari media reports about the Israeli hostage rescue operation in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.

Prominent Qatari Media Figures: Moral Hamas Did Not Booby-Trap Or Kill The Hostages

Senior Al-Jazeera presenter Jamal Rayyan shared on his X account the network's initial report about the Israeli hostage rescue operation and commented: "The morality of the resistance prevented it from booby-trapping the prisoners. There are still 120 prisoners, and I do not think that the rescue of four of them will change the core of any prisoner release agreement."[3]

The Editor-in-Chief of the Qatari daily Al-Sharq, Jabel Al-Harmi, shared on his X account: "[Hamas's military wing, the Izz Al-Din] Al-Qassam [Brigades], are the most moral force, [since] the Al-Qassam fighters who held the hostages refused to kill them [during the rescue operation]."[4]

Qatari Media Reports: The Operation Was A "Barbaric Massacre," Not A Hostage Rescue Mission

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Qatari media reports about the Israeli hostage rescue operation echoed Hamas's narrative, claiming that Israel carried out a "massacre" in the Nuseirat refugee camp and omitting any mention of the hostages and of the fact that they were held among civilians.

For instance, the Al-Raya daily entirely ignored the rescue of the hostages in a report titled: "The Nuseirat Massacre Cut Short the Lives of 210 Martyrs." An editorial article in Al-Raya titled "The Occupation Army – An Ongoing War Machine" also focused on the purported "massacre," with no reference to the hostages, asserting that since the nakba in 1948, Israel has been carrying out massacres in order to expel Palestinians from their homes. The editorial said: "The Palestinians remain steadfast despite the death and destruction. They are confronting the Israeli war machine in order to liberate their land and restore their legitimate rights, which are confirmed by all international laws."[5]

The Al-Raya report about the "Nuseirat massacre"

An article in the Qatari daily Al-Sharq also reflected Hamas's stance regarding the operation, bearing the title: "The Barbaric Massacre in Nuseirat to Bring Back Four Hostages – Hamas: Freeing a Few of the Occupation's Hostages Will Not Change Its Strategic Failure."[6]

The Al-Sharq article.

A cartoon in Al-Sharq conveyed that the world ignores the Palestinians killed in the operation, focusing only on the rescued hostages.

Al-Sharq (Qatar), June 9, 2024

The Qatari daily Al-Watan dedicated an entire page to the subject, prominently featuring a large article titled "Barbaric Massacre in the Nuseirat Refugee Camp" which ignored the hostage rescue operation. At the bottom of the page was a report titled "The Occupation Announces That Four Hostages Were Freed," alongside Hamas's official response and a piece about American involvement in the operation.[7]

The page in Al-Watan dedicated to the "massacre"

Qatari Foreign Ministry Spokesman: Qatar Is Committed To Mediation That Will Meet The Demands Of The Palestinians

The Qatari media coverage of the Israeli hostage rescue operation aligns with Qatar's overall policy, which fully supports Hamas despite Qatar's role as a mediator in the negotiations between this organization and Israel. Recently, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a press conference: "Qatar's commitment to the negotiation efforts will continue as long as it is possible to end the crisis and suffering of the civilians, to return them to their homes, and to rehabilitate the Gaza Strip, in a manner that will meet the demands of the Palestinian people." Al-Ansari did not mention any need to return the Israeli hostages held by Hamas.[8]

It should be noted that in 2021, during the round of fighting between Israel and Hamas in May of that year, Al-Ansari, who was then a journalist, published an article praising Hamas for its "victory" against "the Zionist enemy." He also praised Hamas for having fired "3000 rockets in 10 days" towards Israel, putting "the entire [Zionist] entity under the threat of the Palestinian rockets."[9]