Trump claims Israel won't hit Qatar again

US President Donald Trump says Israel won’t be striking Qatar again after last week’s strike targeting Hamas leaders in Doha infuriated the Gulf state and other US allies in the region.

Asked in the Oval Office whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had given him any guarantees that Israel won’t strike Qatar again, Trump told reporters, “He won’t be hitting Qatar.”

He reiterated that Doha has “been a very good ally, and a lot of people don’t know that.”

Netanyahu “won’t be hitting Qatar, but he will be maybe going after…” Trump added, indicating that he expects Israel to continue trying to target Hamas elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not ruled out further strikes on Hamas leaders following last week's attack in Qatar, saying they would not have immunity "wherever they are".

Speaking at a press conference in Jerusalem with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Netanyahu said every country had the right "to defend itself beyond its borders".

Israel's decision to target Hamas leaders in Qatar - a close US ally - drew international outrage and criticism from US President Donald Trump.

Netanyahu's comments come days after the White House said Trump had assured Qatar "that such a thing will not happen again on their soil".

When pressed on whether the US had any involvement in the strike, Netanyahu told journalists: "We did it on our own. Period."

In response to a question about whether the strike had damaged US relations in the region, Rubio said Washington maintained "strong relationships with our Gulf allies".

The pair presented a broadly united front, with Rubio praising the two countries' technological and cultural ties and Netanyahu saying Israel had "no better ally".

Their meeting comes as Arab leaders hold a summit in a show of support for Qatar.