How an Israeli cell orchestrated an anti-Qatar campaign

A group including Israeli influence experts and political advisers worked on a secret campaign targeting Qatar in the weeks after the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks, before the initiative was abruptly halted, according to a report by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

The campaign was launched days after the assault on southern Israel and sought to pressure Qatar over its relationship with Hamas, Haaretz reported on Monday.

“Their goal was to launch a global civilian influence campaign against Qatar,” the newspaper reported.

Those behind it believed international pressure could force Doha to influence Hamas to secure the release of the 251 captives taken to Gaza on October 7, Haaretz said.

According to the report, about 30 people were recruited to the project, including experts in psychological warfare.

A WhatsApp group called Free the Kidnapped was established several days after October 7. The identities of those who initiated the operation “are barred from publication”, Haaretz said.

The newspaper described the effort as a “civilian initiative”.

But Marc Owen Jones, associate professor at Northwestern University in Qatar, told Al Jazeera, “It is unlikely such a campaign would exist without the motivation of an actor like Israel.”