U.S. Special Envoy David Satterfield said on Saturday that U.S. officials had not been told that Hamas is blocking or diverting humanitarian aid flowing into the Gaza Strip amid shortages of food, medicine and fuel.
My understanding was fuel is the main thing Hamas wants imported, with unconfirmed reports they have taken fuel from some hospital stocks that were being used to run generators for medical equipment. Other estimates say Hamas already has enough fuel stockpiled to keep tunnel ventilation fans and their internal phone network going for months without resupply, so I don’t know what to believe.
That food, water, and medical supplies are going to general use aid isn’t surprising. But the continued embargo on fuel, and resulting increasing electricity blackout, is an ongoing major contributor to the humanitarian tragedies.
My understanding was fuel is the main thing Hamas wants imported, with unconfirmed reports they have taken fuel from some hospital stocks that were being used to run generators for medical equipment. Other estimates say Hamas already has enough fuel stockpiled to keep tunnel ventilation fans and their internal phone network going for months without resupply, so I don’t know what to believe.
That food, water, and medical supplies are going to general use aid isn’t surprising. But the continued embargo on fuel, and resulting increasing electricity blackout, is an ongoing major contributor to the humanitarian tragedies.
It’s likely stockpiles, and remember, Hamas is only a few ten thousand members.
Gaza has 2.2 million people.
A few months of supplies for Hamas would be a day or two of supplies for the entire population.