'You are not welcome here,' Qatar tells Hamas

The US has told Qatar that the presence of Hamas in Doha is no longer acceptable in the weeks since the Palestinian militant group rejected the latest proposal to achieve a ceasefire and a hostage deal, a senior administration official told Reuters on Friday.

“After rejecting repeated proposals to release hostages, its leaders should no longer be welcome in the capitals of any American partner. We made that clear to Qatar following Hamas’s rejection weeks ago of another hostage release proposal,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

Qatar then made the demand to Hamas leaders about 10 days ago, the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said. Washington has been in touch with Qatar over when to close the political office of Hamas, and it told Doha that now was the time following the group’s rejection of the recent proposal.

KAN reported on Friday that Qatar told the terrorist group Hamas, “You are not welcome here,” citing a source familiar with the matter.

According to the KAN report, Qatar had previously explained that Hamas’s leadership in the country was meant to facilitate dialogue during hostage negotiation efforts.

US SECRETARY of State Antony Blinken shakes hands with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in Doha last month. Evidence suggests that Blinken’s visit was intended to relay Israeli and US messages to Iran through Qatar, as confirmed by an ‘Axios’ report. (credit: Nathan Howard/Reuters)

Egyptian sources told the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar that direct talks with senior Hamas officials are ongoing, with recent talks taking place on November 5, the day of the US elections.

Three Hamas officials denied Qatar had told Hamas leaders they were no longer welcome in the country.

This is a developing story.

Reuters contributed to this report.