Qatar’s International Media Office rejects Israeli media claims that its Gaza aid reached Hamas, calling the reports “categorically false.”
Qatar’s International Media Office (IMO) has rejected reports circulating in Israeli media alleging that humanitarian aid sent by the Gulf state to Gaza was diverted to Hamas, calling the claims “categorically false” in a statement issued on Friday.
The IMO said the reports are being promoted by “elements of Israel’s far right and political figures in an attempt to deflect attention from domestic political failures and portray Qatar as a convenient scapegoat”.
“Qatar has never provided money to Hamas,” the statement said, adding that all assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza was directed “through mechanisms coordinated with the Israeli authorities and international partners”.
It said that under previous aid mechanisms, all financial assistance and goods, including food, medicine and fuel, passed through Israel before entering Gaza, with delivery carried out by United Nations organisations in coordination with Israeli authorities. “Nothing was delivered directly by Qatar,” it said.
The IMO noted that Qatar’s aid “has previously received public support from Israeli leaders” and was provided “over many years under successive Israeli governments, with the involvement of Israel’s security agencies,” adding that any funding that may have reached Hamas outside these mechanisms “had nothing to do with Qatar”.
The statement said Qatar...
Qatar’s International Media Office rejects Israeli media claims that its Gaza aid reached Hamas, calling the reports “categorically false.” Qatar’s International Media Office (IMO) has rejected re...