Hamas Rejects Trump’s ‘Surrender Document’ Just Before Leaders Attacked in Doha

Just before its top leaders were targeted in an Israeli strike in Doha, a senior Hamas official had publicly derided a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal as a “humiliating surrender document.” This context adds a complex layer to the attack, suggesting that the prospects for a deal were already fraught with difficulty even before the bombs fell.
The proposal, presented by Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, called for a negotiated end to the war and the release of hostages, contingent on a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Despite the harsh public rhetoric, Hamas’s leadership had agreed to formally convene in Qatar to discuss the plan, indicating that the door to negotiation, however narrow, was still open.
The Israeli attack on Tuesday slammed that door shut. The strike on the very leaders who were set to debate the proposal has been interpreted by many as a preemptive move by Israel, possibly undertaken with the belief that Hamas would ultimately reject the deal anyway. Reports that Trump himself approved the strike add to this perception of a coordinated power play.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has claimed responsibility, justifying the attack as a necessary action against the perpetrators of the October 7th massacre. However, the timing, coming so closely after Hamas’s public rejection but during their private deliberations, raises critical questions about whether the strike was designed to prevent any possibility of a diplomatic resolution, however remote.