COGAT denies blame for blocking equipment from entering Gaza, points at Hamas

COGAT, the Israeli body responsible for coordinating activity in the West Bank and Gaza, denies that it is to blame for the lack of shelter materials in the Gaza Strip.

“COGAT regularly facilitates and encourages the entry of shelter supplies into the Gaza Strip in coordination with international organizations,” it says in a statement. “In the past month alone, more than 20,000 new tents have entered the Gaza Strip as part of ongoing efforts to replenish and maintain shelter stocks.”

However, the Defense Ministry body says that there are “genuine security concerns that Hamas could exploit certain components used to construct shelters to rebuild its terrorist infrastructure and strengthen its capabilities, as it has done in the past with resources intended for the civilian population.”

Therefore, COGAT says, it works with aid organizations “to identify suitable alternatives and establish appropriate monitoring and oversight measures… Claims that Israeli policy is the primary obstacle to improving conditions in the Gaza Strip are not only factually inaccurate, but also divert attention from Hamas’s continued role in obstructing progress and exploiting humanitarian aid for its own political and military purposes.”

After a building collapsed last week in Gaza City, killing more than 20 people, some officials blamed the lack of heavy machinery for hampering efforts to rescue people.