Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Qatar on Saturday of “playing both sides,” leading a top government spokesperson in Doha to hit back, asserting that the premier’s framing of the war in Gaza as one between “civilization and barbarism” echoes the rhetoric of history’s darkest regimes.

The fight on X came two days after Qatar — which serves as one of three mediators in the still-stuck hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas — accused Jerusalem of genocide during an International Court of Justice hearing.

The further escalation in tensions between Israel and Qatar also came a week after officials from both countries accused each other of sabotaging the hostage talks, but they made the allegations in briefings to the media on condition of anonymity.

On Saturday, though, Netanyahu tweeted from his official prime minister X account, “Israel is fighting a just war with just means. After the October 7 atrocities, Prime Minister Netanyahu defined the War of Redemption as a war between civilization and barbarism.”

“The time has come for Qatar to stop playing both sides with its double talk and decide if it’s on the side of civilization or if it’s on the side of Hamas barbarism. Israel will win this just war with just means,” the premier added.

Two hours later, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari hit back, tweeting that Doha “firmly rejects the inflammatory statements issued by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, which fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility.”

“Portraying the ongoing aggression against Gaza as a defense of ‘civilization’ echoes the rhetoric of regimes throughout history that have used false narratives to justify crimes against innocent civilians,” al-Ansari said.

He went on to assert that Qatar has worked since the start of the war to broker a ceasefire and secure the release of the hostages.

“A legitimate question must be raised: Were the releases of no fewer than 138 hostages achieved through so-called ‘just’ military operations, or through the very mediation that is now being unjustly criticized and undermined?” al-Ansari continued. Israel has argued that its military pressure was critical in coaxing Hamas to agree to hostage deals in November 2023 and January 2025.

The Qatari government spokesperson said Israel’s ongoing military offensive has sparked “one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of modern times.”

He blasted Israel’s two-month-and-counting blockade on humanitarian aid, which Jerusalem asserts is aimed at coaxing Hamas to release additional hostages. “Is this truly the model of ‘civilization’ being promoted?” al-Ansari asked.

The government spokesperson asserted that Doha’s efforts to hold Israel to account in the ICJ over the blockade is “not at odds with its role as a credible and impartial mediator.”

He said Qatar will continue working with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar to secure a ceasefire and hostage deal and asserted that the only way to achieve peace in the region is through the establishment of a Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 lines.

Netanyahu’s initial criticism marked a jarring shift from his approach to Qatar just a month, when he characterized the country as “complex… but not an enemy state,” as he sought to defend a pair of his aides who are currently under investigation for allegedly taking money to advance a media narrative boosting Qatar’s image while they worked for the Israeli premier.

The weeks that followed have seen additional snags in the hostage talks, with Hamas insisting it will only release the remaining 59 hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and Netanyahu refusing the trade, arguing that it would leave the terror group in power.

Last week, Israeli officials began accusing Qatar of trying to sabotage the talks by urging Hamas not to agree to the latest proposal on the table. An Arab official familiar with the talks — and not from Qatar — told The Times of Israel that the claim was “manufactured” by Jerusalem to further harm the negotiations and deflect blame for the failure of the talks away from Netanyahu, whose demands have made an agreement all but impossible.

Channel 12 also reported that Netanyahu told US President Donald Trump during a recent phone call that he should not listen to any hostage deal proposals from Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani.

The stance against Qatar may put Netanyahu at odds with Trump and his top aides, who have repeatedly hailed Qatar’s mediation efforts.

Trump is slated to visit Qatar during his first trip to the region later this month. The itinerary also features stops in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates but does not include Israel. While in Riyadh, Trump will participate in a summit of leaders from other Gulf countries, the Axios news site reported on Saturday.

Israel has long had a complex relationship with Qatar, which became one of the first Arab countries to establish trade ties with Jerusalem in 1996. Those relations were severed over two decades later amid the 2009 Gaza war.

In the years that followed, though, Israel urged Qatar to donate hundreds of millions of dollars to finance Gaza humanitarian projects along with the salaries of the Strip’s civil servants.

Critics have warned that the Qatari funds helped strengthen Hamas, allowing the terror group to bolster its military power in the lead-up to the October 7 onslaught.