Ask Haviv Anything – Episode 43: After Doha, Israel Needs a New Story

Host: Haviv Rettig Gur
Date: September 14, 2025

Episode Overview

In this incisive solo episode, Haviv Rettig Gur reflects on the failed Israeli airstrike against Hamas leadership in Doha, Qatar, and explores the extensive diplomatic fallout that has followed. Using this moment as a lens, Haviv analyzes Israel’s evolving position in the Middle East, the shifting regional attitudes, and the urgent need for Israel to craft a new, coherent story for itself—both for its own citizens and for increasingly wary regional and international partners.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Doha Airstrike and Its Immediate Consequences

• The Operation: Israel attempted a covert airstrike in Doha aiming to decapitate Hamas’ political leadership. The operation failed to hit its main targets but accidentally sparked broad international outrage ([00:05]).
• Results: "It took out some minor people in the delegation, not the leadership of Hamas in Doha. It killed the son of Khalil Al Hayyeh, but it did not actually decapitate the organization's political branch as it was meant to." ([00:43])
• Blowback: The strike provoked anger from the U.S., UN, EU, and most notably, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. These Gulf partners, ironically long antagonistic to Qatar, performed public acts of solidarity with Doha, highlighting a shifting regional calculus.

2. The Complex Role of Qatar

• Duality of Qatar: Qatar is “the chief ideological funder of the ideologies that are pursuing Israel at every corner… and also a mediator and an American ally” ([02:09]).
• Al Jazeera’s Role: Haviv details how Al Jazeera serves as both journalistic platform and tool of Muslim Brotherhood ideology, driving anti-Israel sentiment across the Arab world ([10:32]).
• Strategic Investment: Qatar’s immense wealth allows it to cultivate influence in Western politics, sometimes directly employing foreign officials ([15:10]).

3. Regional Perspective on Israeli Military Activism

• Evolving Threat Perception: The region understood strikes against Iran and Hezbollah: “Very, very few people in the region shed a tear when the Israelis humiliated the Iranian regiment” ([20:06]).
• Trigger-Happy Concerns: Repeated, wide-ranging strikes—including against the Druze in Syria and now Qatar—have some Gulf officials worried: Is Israel becoming unpredictable and unwise? Are political extremists driving policy? ([31:59])
  • Quote (on Emirati fears): “The actual Emirati concern is not literally that they're next. It's that the Israelis are stupid… What if Israel is a one trick pony? What if Israel is actually led by a political class that can't shake off the sense of siege?” ([33:08])

4. Normalization and the Political ‘Window’

• Political Leverage in Peace: Gulf states require a clear Israeli commitment to a positive postwar “day after” for Palestinians (especially Gaza) in order to justify normalization to their populations: “The Saudis and the Emiratis… have all been saying the same thing to the Israelis… to expand regional normalization, to expand the Abraham Accords… Israel had to create a political window for those who want to normalize.” ([38:14])
• Narrative Failure: Israel has not clearly articulated this vision, weakening its allies’ positions domestically and internationally ([47:42]).

5. Radicalization, Information War, and Israel’s Messaging Problem

• The Uncontested Narrative: “The Gaza war gets thousandfold coverage to anything those wars got… The focus on Gaza… has not just radicalized young people in the West against Israel. It's profoundly and more affected Middle Easterners…” ([46:14])
• Information Warfare Deficit: Israel lacks both the will and infrastructure to fight the narrative war at home and abroad—a failure Haviv sees as catastrophic ([01:01:42]).
  • Quote: “We don't have that information war apparatus… And 23 months of war haven't let anyone in. Government ministers who do nothing… nobody in the leadership who has lifted a finger to deal in any way with information war.” ([01:04:00])
• Internal Distrust: Even within Israel, the absence of a clear narrative has resulted in widespread distrust of the government’s intentions, particularly around the Gaza war and the fate of hostages ([01:07:01]).

6. After the Victories: The Dilemma of Power

• New Israeli Strength: Israel has decisively beaten Iran and Hezbollah, turning from a nation under siege to a regional superpower. However, there’s no clear plan about what to do with this power ([01:10:36]).
• Analogy to WWII: Just as the Allies destroyed Nazi power and built a better Germany, so too must Israel envision a “better future for Gaza” post-Hamas for its fight to be viewed as legitimate ([53:32]).
• Challenge of Responsibility: “What does it mean to be a great power? … What is Israel's story as a superpower, as a country that can topple the Assad regime, humiliate Khamenei, and shatter Hezbollah?” ([01:17:25])

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On Qatar’s Role:
  “Qatar is the chief ideological funder of the ideologies that are pursuing Israel at every corner… and also a mediator and an American ally… Israel has been at war for two years on multiple fronts.” ([02:09])

• On Emirati and Saudi Worries:
  “The actual Emirati concern is not literally that they're next. It's that the Israelis are stupid… What if Israel is actually led by a political class that can't shake off the sense of siege…?” ([33:08])

• On the Postwar Political Window:
  “To expand the window for normalization… Israel had to create a political window… to commit to a good after war situation… for Palestinians, independence from Israeli military rule of some kind.” ([38:14])

• On Israel’s Information War Failure:
  “If Israel could just respond to the libels quickly, seriously, with good information, it wouldn’t have changed the mind of anyone set against it. But it would have been a little bit easier for allies who were exhausted at the latest libel…” ([01:04:00])

• On Israel Becoming a Great Power:
  “What does it mean to be a great power… It’s this regional power of stupendous capability… showed its strengths more spectacularly than any of us had ever dared hope. And now Israel's enemies are shattered, lie broken, licking their wounds, trying to understand, trying to create for themselves a new story after this spectacular defeat.” ([01:10:36])

• Core Takeaway:
  “We're a regional superpower now. What do we want? What do we want for the Middle East? What do we want for Israel? What do we want for Palestinians? The weird thing about being a superpower is that if you know what you want, there's a pretty decent chance you're going to get it. So it's time we answer those questions for ourselves so that we can answer them for everybody else.” ([01:22:50])

Key Timestamps

• [00:05] - [02:20]: Overview of the failed Doha airstrike and its immediate consequences
• [10:32]: Deep dive into Qatar’s ideological role and Al Jazeera
• [20:06]: Regional reaction to Israeli strikes against Iran/Hezbollah
• [31:59]: Concerns about Israel’s unpredictability from Gulf allies
• [38:14]: The necessity of a postwar “political window” for normalization
• [46:14]: Impact of media coverage on radicalization
• [01:01:42]: Breakdown of Israel’s information war failures
• [01:10:36]: Reflections on Israel as a regional superpower
• [01:17:25]: What Israel’s new story should be
• [01:22:50]: Closing thoughts on telling Israel’s story

Memorable Moments

• Discussion of Israelis not yet realizing their changed status:
  “It doesn't feel like power. It doesn't feel like we're a great superpower. It feels like we're kind of victimized and under siege by all these enemies. And we don't notice that despite the genocidal rhetoric against us… our real-world enemies on the ground are broken.” ([01:14:02])

• Comparison to WWII Allies’ narrative:
  “If that's the goal in Gaza, then all the destruction needed to remove 500 kilometers of tunnels… is valid morally. …the fundamental idea that you can have a terrible war but the goal is the better day after.” ([53:32])

Conclusion

Haviv Rettig Gur argues Israel now finds itself at a crossroads—no longer besieged, but regionally dominant—and desperately needs a clear, positive vision for both itself and its neighbors. The failed Doha strike, and the resulting diplomatic fallout, underscore that military supremacy alone does not secure alliances or legitimacy. Instead, Israel must begin actively and confidently telling a new story—one that envisions a better future for both Israelis and Palestinians, and provides regional and international partners with the clarity and reassurance they crave.

“It’s time that we tell our story. …if you know what you want, there’s a pretty decent chance you’re going to get it. So it's time we answer those questions for ourselves so that we can answer them for everybody else.” ([01:22:50])