US Prez signs order to defend Qatar in wake of Israeli strike

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order vowing to use all measures including US military action to defend the energy-rich nation of Qatar — though it remains unclear just what weight the pledge will carry.

The text of the order, available Wednesday on the White House’s website but dated Monday, appears to be another measure by Trump to assure the Qataris following Israel’s surprise attack on the country targeting Hamas leaders as they weighed accepting a ceasefire with Israel over the war in the Gaza Strip.

The order cites the two countries’ “close cooperation” and “shared interest”, vowing to “guarantee the security and territorial integrity of the state of Qatar against external attack.”

“The United States shall regard any armed attack on the territory, sovereignty or critical infrastructure of the state of Qatar as a threat to the peace and security of the United States,” the order says.

“In the event of such an attack, the United States shall take all lawful and appropriate measures — including diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military — to defend the interests of the United States and of the state of Qatar and to restore peace and stability.”

• Israel’s Defence Minister on Wednesday ordered all remaining Palestinians to leave Gaza City, saying it was their “last opportunity”.

• At least 16 Palestinians were killed across the territory, according to local hospitals, as Hamas weighed the Trump peace plan.

• Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X: “Those who remain in Gaza will be (considered) terrorists and terror supporters.”

• Meanwhile, activists on board the Global Sumud Flotilla sailing toward Gaza said the Israeli navy had begun intercepting their vessels as they approach the besieged Palestinian territory. Greta Thunberg and Nelson Mandela’s grandson are aboard the flotilla.

  Those not fleeing Gaza will

  be termed terrorists: Tel Aviv