Hamas gunmen caught on tape accusing leaders of hoarding humanitarian aid
Terror group said to have punished critics by beating up their wives; Israel reportedly played clips to Biden officials in failed bid to fend off pressure to let in more aid
In unencrypted radio communications intercepted by Israel in early 2024, low-level Hamas operatives in Gaza can be heard accusing their leaders of hoarding humanitarian aid and of ordering an attack on the wives of fighters who criticized them.
The recordings were broadcast by Channel 12 on Sunday. The report said that Israeli officials had played the recordings to counterparts in the Biden administration, in a failed bid to counter White House pressure to keep letting some 250 trucks of aid enter the Strip daily after the November 2023 truce-hostage deal fell apart.
Israel has accused Hamas of stealing the aid. The network, citing the recordings, said the aid reached Hamas’s leaders but not the operatives in the field.
“Tell the leadership in Khan Younis, we’ll beat you up,” one irate operative can be heard yelling. “You only take care of yourselves, there is no leadership.”
Even as aid flows in, the Hamas fighters can be heard complaining about dwindling supplies and growing casualties.
“Our condition is very harsh. We haven’t had an allotment for a long time. What is the leadership’s response?” one low-level operative can be heard saying. “They took everything, stole everything. Soon we won’t find anything to eat or drink.”
In a clip played separately, an identical-sounding operative says: “Regarding the funds we spoke about yesterday, almost nothing is left. We bought cigarettes for ourselves, some of [the money] went to cover our expenses. We want to bring flour.”
“It’s urgent, please,” says the operative. “I’m responsible for 170 souls, I told you 20 are wounded… there had been a few cans [of food]… we went [to get supplies] and there was nothing.”
Those who accused Hamas of hoarding the supplies soon received notice that their wives had been attacked in a Rafah mosque, Channel 12 said. At the reported time of the recordings, the Strip’s southernmost city was inundated with displaced people from north Gaza, many of whom sheltered in mosques.
On the radio network, operatives blamed Hamas leadership for the attack on their wives. “I swear I’ll rain blows on all of you,” one operative yells.
“This is unacceptable to us. We’ll redeem our people with our soul and blood,” he continues, saying of the leadership: “These are not men. They should all wear head covers.”
Another critic adds: “Convey our message to the most senior person in Gaza.”
A third operative pushes back on the accusation: “Guys, calm down, the leadership has nothing to do with the incident and has been following it from the first moment.”
The first operative is undeterred: “Amer, spare me these stories.”
“Everyone needs to understand that our honor is more important to us than our souls. Our blood is worthless when it comes to our souls,” he says. “Despite our entire situation, this [incident] is what burns us up inside. The war is tangential — the war, the rockets, nothing scares us, up to this. This is what kills us — our honor, you dogs.”
Gaza received about 500 trucks daily before the war there was sparked on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and take 251 hostages.
After the invasion and massacre, Israel all but cut off aid to the Strip. Some 250 trucks started entering daily during the weeklong November 2023 truce, which saw Hamas release 105 women and children in return for 240 Palestinian prisoners. After the deal fell apart, aid continued to flow, at Washington’s behest.
A security official quoted by Channel 12 said, “The Americans helped us a lot at the start of the war, but at some point, they tied one of our hands. Not only did the flow of humanitarian aid not feed Gazan civilians — it actually revived Hamas, and in that sense, we helped them get back on their feet.”
