Hamas' Political Headquarters In Qatar Is On Shaky Ground

DOHA, Qatar ― After months of uncertainty about whether the Palestinian militant group Hamas can maintain its strategically valuable political headquarters in the Qatari capital of Doha, a string of new developments suggests an answer may come soon: No.

The Wall Street Journal on Saturday published an article saying Hamas recently asked two regional governments if they would host its leaders instead of Qatar, a U.S. ally that has hosted them for more than a decade. The same day, Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, where the Palestinian organization already has an office and deep connections.

A small but loud crew of mostly Republican lawmakers has for years opposed the U.S. policy of tacitly blessing Hamas leaders’ residence in Qatar, a short drive from America’s largest base in the Middle East. And on Tuesday, they got a boost from a prominent Democrat: Rep. Steny Hoyer (Md.) issued a statement saying Qatar should eject Hamas’ leadership if there is not progress soon on freeing remaining hostages whom the Palestinian group and partners captured in their shock attack on Israel on Oct. 7, when nearly 1,200 people were killed.

Qatar’s embassy in Washington quickly responded: “Blaming and threatening the mediator is not constructive.” Still, on Wednesday, Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, said his country is conducting “a full evaluation” of its role in mediation, citing “political exploitation.”

A spokesperson for the Qatari government did not respond to a request for comment on this article.

Established in 2012 with U.S. encouragement, the Hamas office in Qatar has for years aggravated hawkish Americans and hard-right