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We heard the endless cries of “Free Palestine!” » in recent weeks, but there is a variation on this theme that hits the mark: “Liberate Palestine from Hamas!”
It is true that Gaza residents elected Hamas in 2006 and, according to polls over the years, continue to support Hamas.
At the same time, they did not have a wide range of choices when voting. As note on Snopes.com, “The election saw a political split between the secular Fatah (an arm of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)) which dominated the PLO since the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, and the Islamist Hamas which shape in 1987 as an offshoot of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.
So it was Fatah (part of the PLO) against Hamas, the more secular against the more religious, neither being a true peace partner with Israel. In the end, Hamas received only 44% of the vote, but obtained the majority of legislative seats, from which it took power.
Either way, however, they have come to power, their leaders have decimated Gaza and caused great suffering to the people, while the leaders get richer and countless hundreds of millions of dollars are invested in the anti-Israeli terrorist efforts.
Like the New York Post reported this week, “While their people languish in poverty and are treated like human shields, Hamas leaders live a billionaire lifestyle.
“The three main leaders of the terrorist group alone are worth a staggering $11 billion and enjoy a life of luxury in the sanctuary of the emirate of Qatar. »
Not only, but in 2012, the Gatestone Institute note that “according to an investigative report published in the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, at least 600 millionaires live in the Gaza Strip. The newspaper article also refutes the claim that the Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis due to the Israeli blockade.
Yes, “Palestinian millionaires, according to the report, have made their fortunes from the hundreds of underground tunnels along the Gaza Strip-Egypt border.”
“Knowledgeable Palestinian sources revealed that every day, in addition to weapons, thousands of tons of fuel, medicines, general goods, vehicles, electrical appliances, drugs, medicines and cigarettes are smuggled into the Palestinian territory. Gaza Strip through more than 400 tunnels. A former Sudanese government official who recently visited the Gaza Strip reportedly said he found basic necessities that were not available in Sudan. Nearly all of the tunnels are controlled by the Hamas government, which created a special commission to oversee the smuggling trade, making the Hamas government the smuggling industry’s largest benefactor.
Speaking of these tunnels, reports indicate that there are 300 miles tunnels under Gaza to the point that Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared that “Gaza is the largest terrorist base built by humanity – the entire city is one big terrorist base.” And who can calculate the amount of money spent on weapons?
According to The Times of Israel, “As residents of the Gaza Strip suffer daily hardships due to the dire economic situation in the enclave, their Hamas rulers spend more than $100 million a year on the group’s military wing , the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. , according to estimates from Israeli and Palestinian sources. Spending on tunneling accounts for about $40 million of that annual sum.
NBC News reported that “the unemployment rate in Gaza is 47% and more than 80% of its population lives in poverty, according to the United Nations. Hamashowever, financed an armed force of several thousand people, equipped with rockets and drones and built a vast network of tunnels under Gaza. Estimates of its annual military budget vary between $100 million and $350 million, depending on Israeli and Palestinian sources.”
Not only that, but it is claimed that “Hamas leaders invested their earnings in an international investment portfolio worth $500 million in real estate and other assets from companies in Algeria, Saudi Arabia, in Sudan, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, which it uses to hide and launder its money, according to a Treasury department announcement.”
The Guardian Remarks that “the World Food Program estimates that in normal times, more than 60% of the population of Gaza faces food insecurity.”
And a report on the BESA (Bégin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies), States that the electrical infrastructure in Gaza is in a deplorable state. The population of Gaza receives an average of four hours per day of continuous electricity from the main grid. This is largely due to Gaza’s dilapidated electrical infrastructure which was damaged during Operation Protective Edge in 2014. Although large sums of foreign aid were provided to Hamas specifically to rebuild the grid, Hamas diverted the funds elsewhere and left the network in its current state.
So, to summarize, Hamas leaders are enriching themselves obscenely while hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on terror tunnels and weapons rather than improving the people’s way of life. In turn, they struggle to make ends meet, with an unemployment rate of 47 percent, more than 80 percent living in poverty and with about four hours a day of continuous electricity.
And I haven’t said a word about Hamas’ oppressive Sharia policies. The simple trail of money is enough to modify this omnipresent song. So, “Free Palestine” indeed – from Hamas.
Dr. Michael Brown(www.askdrbrown.org) is the host of the nationally syndicated show line of fire radio program. His latest book isWhy so many Christians have abandoned the faith. Connect with him on Facebook, TwitterOr Youtube.
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