New Delhi: In a call to the Emir of Qatar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned yesterday’s Israeli missile strike as an infringement of Qatar’s sovereignty. It was the first time India has used the word “condemn” in connection with any Israeli action during the Gaza war, although Modi did not mention Israel by name in his public post.

The call came a day after the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had issued a brief statement saying India was “deeply concerned by this development”, without referring to Qatari sovereignty.

A day later, the Indian leader himself spoke with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani. According to the Qatari readout, Modi had initiated the call.

Modi later wrote on X that he had expressed concern to the emir and declared that “India condemns the violation of the sovereignty of the brotherly State of Qatar”.

Modi also said he had expressed “deep concern” to the Qatari emir and stressed that India stood for resolving issues “through dialogue and diplomacy” and “firmly in support of peace and stability in the region”.

According to the Qatari readout, Modi expressed solidarity with Qatar and conveyed India’s “strong condemnation of a cowardly Israeli attack” that struck residential premises used by Hamas leaders.

India, per the release issued by the emir’s office, underlined that the strike was “a blatant violation of international law and norms and a serious threat to the security of Qatar and the region”.

The readout also noted that Modi categorically rejected “any aggression” that endangered Qatar’s security and stability.

For his part, the emir said Qatar would take all necessary measures to safeguard its security and sovereignty, while thanking Modi for his sentiments and India’s support.

In his X post, Modi added that India was “against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”, a remark seen as an effort to balance the rare condemnation with the usual Indian stance that aligns with Israel’s counter-terrorism position on its Gaza operations. There was no reference to terrorism in the Qatari readout.

Despite the caveat, Modi’s statement stood out for its rarity in India’s articulation of its positions on Israeli actions in the conflict.

India’s stance on the Gaza war has shifted over the past two years. On October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched its attack, Modi was among the first leaders to respond, expressing solidarity with Israel. Later that month, India abstained from a UN General Assembly resolution that called for a humanitarian truce as Israel expanded ground operations in Gaza.

By December 2023, India had voted in favour of several General Assembly resolutions on humanitarian aid and the work of UNRWA, the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees.

Through 2024, the MEA repeatedly underlined that India condemned terrorism, supported a two-state solution and was concerned about the civilian toll.

In June 2025, however, India abstained when the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly passed a resolution demanding an immediate and lasting ceasefire, which drew criticism from opposition parties at home.

A month later in July, India’s envoy to the UN called for an immediate ceasefire, warning of acute shortages in Gaza. Israel was not named, but the remarks marked one of New Delhi’s strongest expressions of concern over the dire humanitarian situation in the beleaguered coastal strip.

Diplomatic sources said the strong language on Qatar reflected the importance the Modi government attaches to ties with Doha, as well as the unprecedented nature of such an attack on the Gulf kingdom.

However, it is not clear why India did not condemn the Israeli strikes in its initial reaction.

When the Qatari leader visited India in February, Modi personally went to the airport to receive him, a rare gesture for an Indian prime minister.

During that visit, the two countries upgraded relations to a “strategic partnership”, with Qatar pledging to invest $10 billion in India.

That trip came a year after Modi had travelled to Doha himself, where he thanked the Qatari leadership for the release of eight Indian naval veterans who had at one point faced death sentences.

Qatar is also India's top supplier of LNG, accounting for 40% of its total gas imports.

On Tuesday, the Israeli air force targeted a residential compound in Doha’s Wadi Rawdan district at around 3 pm local time. Israel said that the targets were senior Hamas leaders, including negotiators, who were engaged in talks on a US peace proposal on Gaza.

The targeted senior leaders survived, but six others were killed, including five Hamas members and a Qatari security officer.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the strike as a justified response to recent terror incidents, calling the targets orchestrators of the October 7 and subsequent attacks.

Qatar condemned the strike as a criminal violation of sovereignty and international law, with the emir vowing to take all measures to defend the country.

The strike drew widespread international criticism, with Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, France, Germany, the UK and the EU all issuing condemnations, while UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres described it as a breach of territorial integrity.

The US said the strike was carried out unilaterally by Israel, with Washington providing only a late warning to Qatari authorities.

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