(New York Times) Matthew Rosenberg - Arab and Western officials say there is substance to Israeli claims of Hamas stockpiling supplies, including desperately needed food and fuel. Hamas, they say, has spent years building dozens of kilometers of tunnels under Gaza where it has amassed stores of virtually everything needed to keep fighting for three to four months without resupply. Hamas has hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel for vehicles and rockets; caches of ammunition, explosives and materials to make more; and stockpiles of food, water and medicine, the officials said. Lt.-Col. Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, said Thursday that if Gazans or the UN need fuel, they should get it from Hamas. "Hamas has fuel but has different priorities - to provide ventilation and air for its tunnel system, for firing rockets." Samir Ghattas, an Egyptian strategic analyst who closely monitors Gaza, said there was little chance that Hamas would be willing to provide food or any other kinds of supplies to aid civilians. "The Hamas movement cares only about the Hamas movement," he said. "The public of Gaza mean absolutely nothing for Hamas."
2023-10-29 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive