Expert warns: Israel continues to strengthen Hamas with its own hands

Hamas economy researcher Eyal Ofer claims in an interview that Israel has been fueling Hamas for 15 years through trade and transferring resources that become weapons against it. Ofer describes mechanisms of extortion, money laundering, and use of cash transactions, and criticizes the involvement of COGAT with private traders in Gaza.

In an interview with 103FM, Hamas economy researcher Eyal Ofer warns that Israel continues to strengthen Hamas through its trade and economic aid policy toward the Gaza Strip. Ofer claims that Hamas charges thousands of shekels for the entry of trucks into Gaza, depending on the type of goods, and forces traders to accept cash payments in order to launder money through the banking system. According to him, Hamas serves as the bank of Gaza and smuggles funds out of the Strip. Ofer sharply criticized the involvement of COGAT (Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories) with private traders, and claims that economic bodies in Israel and the Palestinian Authority profit from supplying resources to Gaza, including cement for building tunnels. He also notes that fruit growers use Gaza to regulate prices in the Israeli market by dumping surpluses cheaply. Ofer asks why Israel needs to intervene in Gaza's civilian problems, and emphasizes that the IDF will act only on security issues.