In 2015, he allegedly helped build a naval marina for use by Hamas’s military in northern Gaza.
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A Shin Bet official said that the humanitarian aid went nearly exclusively to Hamas terrorists and their families and not to the non-terror associated residents of the Gaza Strip.
Abu Zuhri called on the worldwide community to bear its responsibility over such “practices which could have risky consequences”.
“This investigation proves yet again the way in which Hamas exploits aid resources of global groups in the Gaza Strip which are meant for the civilian population”, the Shin Bet said, adding Bursh had been indicted in an Israeli court.
After arresting a top official of humanitarian missionary group World Vision for funneling millions of dollars to Hamas, the Shin Bet and security forces announced Tuesday that they have arrested a United Nations employee for assisting Hamas.
USA -based World Vision rejected the allegation. According to Shin Bet, Halabi had diverted $7.2m (£5.5m) each year since 2010 to Hamas and its military wing.
It was alleged that relief group World Vision’s Gaza representative gave millions of dollars to the Islamist militant group Hamas.
The indictment also states that he is suspected of allowing Hamas members to raid UNDP work sites and take supplies.
The Israeli indictment and media reported that these funds were used in the construction of Hamas tunnels, military installations, and other terrorist activities. Worldwide aid money, “sorely needed by the Gaza population”, had been “stolen for terror purposes”, he added.
The UNDP is the “latest victim of Hamas”, he said. The Shin Bet says he turned a blind eye to Hamas tunnel entrances and weapons caches, and prioritized housing rehabilitation in areas populated by Hamas. Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon said the UN must do more to put an end to the “exploitation” of the UN by Hamas.
Following Halabi’s arrest, World Vision pointed out that he had been in custody for 50 days and spent about half of them without any legal counsel. In recent years, its Gaza branch has focused on rebuilding the homes and businesses destroyed in the conflicts between Israel and Hamas.
The indictment was the second time in less than a week that Israel accused a Palestinian worker of an global aid organisation of helping Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement which controls Gaza.
In Gaza, Hamad El Halabi, the suspect’s 33-year-old brother, dismissed Israeli claims that they had obtained a confession from his brother.
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On Sunday, dozens of Palestinians who used to benefit from World Vision aid in Gaza rallied in solidarity with Halabi, demanding his release. The closure has also made it hard to grow the moribund economy, and it has made defiance of Hamas risky, as there are few places to escape repercussions in the tiny territory. While on August 1, Save the Children organization said that it would begin investigation following similar accusations made by Israel.
