Lawmakers welcome the move to expel Hamas from Qatar, but some say it is too late

On Capitol Hill, critics of Qatar celebrated the expulsion of the Hamas leadership from the Gulf state, which Qatar had hosted for years. But lawmakers also expressed frustration that the move had taken so long, with some arguing that kicking out Hamas leaders wasn’t enough – and that those officials should be arrested and extradited instead.

The decision to expel Hamas’ leadership comes after a year of increasing pressure from Capitol Hill. Government officials had largely resisted the pressure, saying Qatar had served as a key mediator in hostage negotiations. However, in recent weeks they have reportedly told Qatar that it must expel Hamas officials.

Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC), one of Qatar’s most vocal critics in the Senate, said in a statement that the news was “welcome but long overdue.”

“For months, I led a bipartisan group of senators who stated unequivocally that Qatar should expel Hamas leaders from Doha after rejecting reasonable negotiations to release hostages,” Budd said. “More than 400 days since October 7, the Qatari government has finally changed course and done this. I look forward to working with the new Trump administration to implement a new policy that exudes strength and puts maximum pressure on Hamas and any nation or organization that supports it until it releases every single hostage, including the North Carolinian Keith Siegel.”

Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO), who like Budd sponsored legislation aimed at reassessing U.S. military ties with Qatar if Hamas leaders were not expelled, called the decision “a major victory for the United States.” US diplomacy and for Israel.” She said in a statement that Hamas leaders should be permanently banned from entering Qatar.

“Qatar has so far failed to force Hamas to come to the negotiating table and reach an agreement to release the Israeli and American hostages. “It is crystal clear that Hamas is not a bona fide negotiating partner and should never receive protection from partners of the United States,” Wagner said.

She said she had personally discussed the issue with Qatari leaders during a previous visit and said she had “made it clear that harboring Hamas was unreasonable.”

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) expressed frustration on social media that the push didn’t come sooner.

“After the election, the United States magically discovers that it has enough influence to pressure Qatar to stop hosting Hamas,” Torres said. “Completely inexplicable.”

It remains to be seen what will now happen to the Hamas leaders, particularly whether and where they will be allowed to flee Qatar, while some are pressuring to arrest and extradite the Hamas leaders rather than allowing them to escape.

Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Jim Risch (R-ID), respectively the top Republicans on the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, had cited several Senate Republican colleagues in a Nov. 4 letter saying They called on the United States to demand that Qatar freeze the assets of Hamas leaders and otherwise restrict their activities, and to indict and attempt to extradite Hamas officials in Qatar.

Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said on X that Hamas leaders should not leave Qatar as free men.

“This would be a U.S.-backed evacuation of Hamas leaders and no accountability,” Goldberg said. “Seize all assets (finally!).” Detain all terrorists. There are Americans being held hostage. Relocating headquarters is not the goal.”

He said the US was “knowingly allowing Qatar to evacuate more wanted terrorists” and that the decision “should be met with outrage.”

Matthew Levitt, Fromer-Wexler senior fellow and director of the Jeanette and Eli Reinhard Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, noted that Qatari leaders have denied pushing out Hamas.

But Levitt told it Jewish Insider that if the officers are kicked out, they will likely flee to Iran and Turkey and eventually Lebanon once the war there ends.