Hamas could not have developed its capabilities to the extent that it did without the billions of dollars it received from around the world, according to Dr. Udi Levy, former head of the Mossad’s Economic Warfare Division and currently a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Institute of Strategy and Security.
In an interview with The Media Line, Levy explains that his unit alerted the Israeli government in 2014 about Hamas’ significant financial support, primarily from Qatar, after more than a decade of monitoring its financial activities. He notes that the government, led then and now by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, adopted a policy of permitting this influx of funds, believing it would temporarily ease the security tensions between Israel and Hamas. Without substantial funding, particularly from Qatar, Levy says, Hamas could not have constructed extensive tunnel networks, acquired numerous rockets, and, crucially, paid its personnel.
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Levy warns that military defeat alone is insufficient against groups like Hamas; halting their funding is crucial for victory. While the war has weakened Hamas’ financial system, the group continues to have sources of income. He reveals that substantial funds are still accessible to the group in Turkish banks and that humanitarian aid intended for Gaza is being diverted to the organization.
This is not solely an Israel-Palestinian issue, Levy says, but a global concern. He cautions that if the global community does not halt funding to radical groups, liberal Western nations may soon discover they have inadvertently allowed terrorist ideologies to proliferate within their own borders.