Overview

• In interviews published Sept. 16–17, former Mossad counterterror chief Oded Ailam portrays Qatar as presenting itself as a neutral mediator while secretly empowering militant groups.
• Ailam claims Qatar transferred about $1.8 billion to Hamas and hosts the group’s leaders in Doha, describing Al Jazeera as serving Hamas’s agenda.
• He alleges some Hamas hostage videos were produced by Al Jazeera crews, a claim presented without supporting evidence in the reports.
• Qatar’s mediation with actors such as the Taliban and Syrian factions is depicted as a strategy to gain global leverage, prestige from events like the World Cup, and potential Olympic ambitions.
• Ailam further asserts that Qatari-based negotiators harden Hamas positions, that hostage releases followed Israeli military pressure, and that Doha wields Western investments and covert political payments to build influence.