From Ian:
Israel charges senior Gaza aid worker with funneling tens of millions to Hamas
Israeli minister: Gaza charity likely ‘turned blind eye’ to terror funding
Israel charges senior Gaza aid worker with funneling tens of millions to Hamas
Over the course of several years, the Hamas terrorist organization siphoned off “tens of millions of dollars” from the US-based World Vision charity for its military wing, the Shin Bet security service said Thursday.
Those funds — allegedly 60 percent of the charity’s total budget — were used to purchase weapons, dig tunnels and construct military installations for Hamas, investigators said.
Muhammad Halabi, a Hamas member and manager of operations for World Vision in Gaza, was indicted on a number of security-related charges in a Beersheba court on Thursday for his role in the alleged scheme. He was arrested in a joint Shin Bet-IDF-Israel Police operation at the Erez Crossing on June 15 as he tried to return to the Strip, the Shin Bet said.
Halabi, a member of Hamas from a young age, was handpicked to infiltrate the international charity in 2005 in order to steal money for the terrorist organization, according to the investigation.
“This was a meaningful and important investigation that showed — above all — the cynical and crude way in which Hamas takes advantage of funds and resources from international humanitarian aid organizations,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.
In a statement released following the indictment, World Vision defended Halabi and denied the allegations against him.
Israeli minister: Gaza charity likely ‘turned blind eye’ to terror funding
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan on Thursday warned that the links between terrorist organizations and aid groups in the Gaza Strip are substantial, and urged donor states to ensure that their money does not end up in the hands of terrorists.
“I imagine that in the World Vision organization, which is very anti-Israeli, they turned a blind eye,” Erdan told Army Radio after a senior Palestinian aid worker in Gaza was indicted for allegedly funneling millions of dollars in donations to the Hamas terror group.
“The connections that were uncovered today are part of a much wider and very serious phenomenon,” Erdan said.
“Israel will not permit this, and we will take action against these organizations and their activists,” he said. “We expect donor countries and international organizations to carefully check the destination of the money.”
The Shin Bet security service said earlier Thursday that the Hamas terrorist organization siphoned off “tens of millions of dollars” from the US-based World Vision charity over a period of several years, using the money to fund its military wing.
























