Gaza health official: Hamas holds over half a million liters of fuel under Shifa Hospital
(Video: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
The IDF released on Friday a recording of a call with a healthcare official in the Gaza Strip who admitted that Hamas was hoarding massive fuel reserves under the Shifa Hospital which it uses for its terrorist activities.
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“In a call that took place yesterday, on November 2, with an official in the healthcare system in Gaza, it was revealed again that Hamas is holding the fuel reserves in the Gaza Strip and is using it,” a statement attached to the recording read.
In the recording, the two men are heard saying there are between half a million and a million liters (roughly 132,000-265,000 gallons) of diesel stockpiled under the hospital.
“The hospital official states that Hamas’ fuel reserves of over half a million liters are under the Shifa Hospital. The call confirms that Hamas controls the energy and fuel resources in the Gaza Strip and chooses to direct them for terrorism," the IDF statement continued.
The release comes after a statement by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi that did not rule out the possibility of the transfer of fuel to the Gaza Strip sparked political controversy.
The army emphasized that “if fuel is allowed to enter the Gaza Strip, Hamas plans to seize those resources. The IDF will continue to expose information that proves that the Hamas terrorist organization uses the resources of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip for terrorism.”
Israel maintains a firm stance that it will not provide fuel to Gaza as part of routine humanitarian assistance provided to the territory, citing that such resources are likely to be appropriated by Hamas for its terrorist activities. The recording that was disclosed appears to corroborate these concerns.
Hamas is stealing fuel from hospitals at the expense of gazan civilians
(Video: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
On Wednesday, the IDF revealed a recording of an intercepted phone call between a Hamas commander and the head of a hospital in the Gaza Strip, suggesting that the terrorist group has been diverting resources, particularly fuel, from hospitals for its military activities, leaving Gazan civilians without access to basic resources.
In the recording, a commander from Hamas's Western Jabaliya Battalion is heard speaking to a Gazan resident, with the director of the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza's Beit Lahia also on the line, and the commander repeatedly alludes to Hamas taking fuel from the hospital’s stocks, “working as a government for the sake of the country.”
Hamas commando: Terror group using hospitals as shelter
(Video: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
Last week, the IDF and Shin Bet released footage from interrogations of two terrorists who infiltrated Israel on October 7 and provided further evidence of Hamas operatives using hospitals in the Gaza Strip, and particularly Shifa, to shield themselves from IDF strikes.
During his interrogation, Omar Abu Rusha, a member of Hamas's elite Nukhba force, was asked about the connection between hospitals in Gaza and the Palestinian enclave's vast system of subterranean tunnels, to which he responded, “most of them are hidden in the hospitals. (At) Shifa for example (the hospital), there are underground levels… Shifa is not small, it is a big place that can be used to hide things."
Abu Rusha is then asked by the interrogator about why Hamas was using medical institutions, such as hospitals and clinics, for protection, to which he answered, “you won’t strike them.”
He explains that Hamas is taking advantage of the fact that Israel won’t strike hospitals to smuggle “explosives, weapons, food, medical equipment” for their operatives. “I told you, Shifa is a safe place, it will not be struck. To them it is safe, that’s what we know.”
Abu Rusha also expressed criticism of Hamas when asked about the fuel situation in Gaza. "First, they take care of their own cars and jeeps and then distribute them to the people. They refuel from full containers for themselves," he said.