|
Trending Topics
|
Source: https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/stop-aiding-the-enemy/
International Aid Has Been Financing Armed Actors
(Times of Israel) Aviram Bellaishe - In February 2023, weeks after an earthquake killed thousands in Syria, 100 trucks of humanitarian aid sat stranded because Assad's regime demanded more than half the cargo. Turkish-backed groups blocked another 30. This was an example of a system that fed wars while claiming to fight them. When President Trump dismantled USAID, his diagnosis was not wrong. The multilateral pipeline was compromised structurally. But in that vacuum, Hamas regroups, the Houthis consolidate, and every armed actor who profited from the aid economy waits for the spigot to reopen. Over 60 years, the humanitarian aid pipeline has become a revenue stream for armed actors. An August 2025 study by Hebrew University researchers examined eight conflict zones and found that in the most acute cases, over 80% of aid never reached its intended recipients. Agencies struck quiet deals with armed groups. Field reports downplayed diversion to protect funding. In Gaza, captured Hamas documents show the group directed up to 25% of aid to its military. The aid wasn't just stolen. It was the terror economy's revenue stream. Aid in a conflict zone that does not include deradicalization is not neutral. It is assistance to the regime that controls the classrooms. In Gaza, aid that feeds bodies while Hamas feeds minds is aid to Hamas. In Yemen, food distribution that strengthens Houthi control over who eats is a military operation with a humanitarian label. The writer, vice president of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, has served in senior government positions for over 25 years.