Israel says Gazans with travel permits recruited by Hamas for terror

Major General Yoav Mordechai, who heads the IDF unit that administers the crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip, threatens to close the crossings should Hamas continue to recruit people “who exit Gaza to Israel for terrorism purposes,” Mordechai’s unit, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, says.

In an interview published this morning in the Palestinian newspaper Al Quds, Mordechai accuses Hamas of exploiting “permits given to merchants and workers from Gaza who travel to the West Bank,” COGAT says in a statement. Hamas, Mordechai says, recruits them to assist in terror plots, thus making it harder for Israel to issue such permits.

Mordechai says “it seems that Hamas is preparing for another military offensive against Israel” and has no real intention of serving the interests of the population in the Strip,” according to the statement. “This situation will eventually cause the closing of the crossings and the cessation of exits from Gaza,” he warns.

Mordechai says Israeli policies are “designed to ease residents’ lives and to strengthen the Palestinian economy. Following the last operation, Israel has adopted a plan to assist the Gazan economy while taking consideration of the security situation.” To that end, he says, COGAT “has already issued over 100,000 travel permits for prayers, medical treatments and merchandise.”

— Judah Ari Gross