Keeping a low profile

It was no coincidence that the reports that Qatar plans to expel Hamas officials residing in the Persian Gulf nation came from Lebanon's Al Mayadeen news agency, which is affiliated with Hezbollah.

The report, yet to be corroborated, suggested that Doha had asked several senior Hamas officials, tasked with coordinating operations with the terrorist group's operatives in Judea and Samaria, to leave its soil, citing "external pressure."

Al Mayadeen is considered a reliable news source for the most part, but it seems that beyond Hezbollah's and Iran's desire to embarrass Qatar with this news report, they are also sending a clear message to Hamas to "come home to Tehran."

The once warm relations between Iran and Hamas soured shortly after the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011, when the Gaza Strip-based terrorist group sided with the rebels seeking to unseat President Bashar Assad, who enjoys Iran and Hezbollah's support.

Now Iran wants Hamas to return to its growing fold, but the love affair between Qatar and Hamas is far from over. After all, Qatar's very survival is proof of its unique ability to play multiple sides against the middle in the Persian Gulf: It generously sponsors Hamas while keeping the channels of communication with Hezbollah and Iran open, while hosting the United States Central Command headquarters in the Gulf. Doha is also home to the influential Al Jazeera news network. The combination of these factors has made Qatar into a virtual regional power.

Lately, however, it seems Qatar has gone too far. Its relations with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf neighbors have taken a turn for the worse; its ties with Egypt have been severed; and U.S. President Donald Trump, during his visit to Riyadh last month, declared in a room full of Arab leaders, including Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, that Hamas is a terrorist group.

This may have prompted Qatar to keep a lower profile with regard to its support of Hamas, although the relationship is unlikely to change dramatically.The Qatari rulers' megalomania -- they see themselves as a superpower in every respect -- requires they maintain their relationship with the "bad guys," so for now, outgoing Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal can sleep soundly in his luxury Doha hotel.

Still, Mashaal and his ilk would be wise to learn the lesson that Assad has already internalized. The Syrian president was once a close ally of Qatar's rulers, but at the moment of truth, Doha turned against him and sided with the radical Islamist groups in Syria, as they seemed to better serve its interests.

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