Hamas tried to smuggle fighters through Egypt along with foreign nationals, US confirms
Israel found Hamas tunnel accessories in aid truck meant for Gaza
Hamas attempted to smuggle terrorists out of the Gaza Strip through Egypt, together with foreign nationals, according to a senior U.S. official in a press briefing on Saturday.
He explained that the delay in enabling foreign nationals to leave the Gaza Strip was caused first by a flat refusal of Hamas and then by attempts to pass off terrorists as civilians.
“So, this includes about 6,000 foreign nationals. It includes – I want to be careful with numbers, but about a thousand American citizens and – including their families – about 4- to 500 American citizens, and mostly dual nationals, including some locally employed staff that we work with,” the official said.
After Hamas was convinced in negotiations by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar, to allow the exit of foreign nationals and wounded, Egypt on Wednesday agreed to open its Rafah border crossing.
Hamas was to provide a list of people wishing to leave beforehand, which was then vetted.
“But the list that was provided, once it was vetted, had about a third of the wounded Palestinians on the list were members of Hamas, fighters. They’re members of Hamas,” according to the U.S. official.
In the end, only those verified as wounded civilians were allowed through the border crossing.
The U.S. official also stated that about 100 trucks per day are now entering the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing.
Aid trucks that are meant to enter Gaza are first inspected in Egypt, before being driven to Israel for an inspection by Israeli COGAT (Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories) officials, and then return to Egypt and enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing, according to the Times of Israel.
Last week, Israeli inspectors discovered oxygen concentrators meant for use in Hamas’ terror tunnels in one of the aid trucks, underscoring the need for a thorough inspection by Israel.
“These weren’t for use in the hospitals, but below them. That’s why they were smuggled among boxes of cookies,” an Israeli official told the Times of Israel.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
