Israel's attack on the Hamas negotiating team in Doha this week was the latest dramatic escalation of its regional war.
The timing of the attack - perpetrated as mediators met to discuss the latest ceasefire deal - was a brazen and desperate attempt to dismantle the fragile diplomatic framework painstakingly constructed over years of negotiation and engagement.
Yet, the attack was not only an assault on the mediation efforts to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza, but also represents a direct threat to diplomacy and international order.
Doha has long been a central hub for regional diplomacy, engaging with all parties, including Hamas. Reports indicate that senior Hamas leaders were meeting in Doha to discuss a recent American proposal when the strike occurred.
This was not a battlefield encounter but a direct attack on a political process in motion.
By striking a target in Qatar, which has long offered a neutral venue for talks, Israel has crossed a dangerous threshold, undermining the possibility of negotiated solutions....