Hamas redirects humanitarian aid deliveries to its tunnels for use by members of the terrorist group, a Gaza woman told an Al Jazeera reporter.
According to the exchange posted to social media on Wednesday night, the elderly woman said that “all aid goes down [into Hamas tunnels]. The aid does not reach the nation and entire people.”
The journalist from the Qatari state-owned network then tried to convince her that only a small amount of aid is coming into the Strip and that it is all being properly distributed.
The woman wagged her finger at him and said, “Everything goes to their [the terrorists’] houses. They take it. They will even shoot me and do whatever they want to me, Hamas.”
Hamas receipts show gap with Gaza population
On Thursday, the IDF revealed receipts for items worth thousands of dollars illustrating the gap between Hamas and the public in Gaza.
The invoices were found during the ground operation in Gaza and examined by the military’s intelligence unit.
The items include luxury jewelry purchased by the son of Hamas politburo head Ismail Haniyeh.
“In one of the raids, five receipts were seized in the name of Ma’ad Ismail Haniyeh—the fourth son of the head of the political bureau of Hamas, testifying to the purchase of luxury jewelry for thousands of dollars from shops in the Gaza Strip and Qatar,” the IDF said in a statement.
The IDF said that the amount of money from one receipt is equal to almost two years’ salary for the average Gaza resident.
Fuel for southern Gaza
Israel’s Security Cabinet on Wednesday evening approved a “minimal supplement of fuel” into the southern Gaza Strip, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
The War Cabinet recommended the move as “necessary to prevent a humanitarian collapse and the outbreak of epidemics.”
According to the announcement, “the minimal amount will be determined from time to time by the War Cabinet according to the morbidity situation and humanitarian situation in the Strip.”
Coalition Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir voted against the move, which reportedly stemmed from U.S. pressure.
Washington is reportedly demanding that the current daily delivery of 60,000 liters (nearly 16,000 gallons) be doubled or tripled. Channel 12 reported that the War Cabinet will gradually increase the daily amount from 60,000 liters to 180,000 liters (47,550 gallons).