No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
Israel has long restricted aid to Gaza on the argument that Hamas steals it to use as a weapon of control over the population. (...)
For nearly two years, Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid provided by the United Nations and other international organizations. The government has used that claim as its main rationale for restricting food from entering Gaza.
But the Israeli military never found proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid from the United Nations, the biggest supplier of emergency assistance to Gaza for most of the war, according to two senior Israeli military officials and two other Israelis involved in the matter.
In fact, the Israeli military officials said, the U.N. aid delivery system, which Israel derided and undermined, was largely effective in providing food to Gaza’s desperate and hungry population. (...)
Tags: #english #israel #gaza #palestine #palestinians #hamas #starvation #hunger #humnitarian aid #food aid #human rights #war crimes