Report: Government contributed NIS 700 million to Gaza aid mechanism it claims it doesn’t fund

The Israeli government has set aside hundreds of millions of shekels to fund the new humanitarian aid mechanism in the Gaza Strip, the Kan public broadcaster reports, contrary to government officials who have insisted that Israel has no part in its funding.

According to the report, the government approved the transfer of 700 million shekels ( roughly $280 million) last month to an unclear source, identified by the government only as “the defense establishment.”

Citing unnamed officials, Kan reports that the money is being used to fund the new aid mechanism, run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, and that the decision to transfer the funds was made under the radar, in an attempt to keep the public from finding out.

The government has insisted that it has no part in funding GHF, which has faced scrutiny due to the lack of information regarding its funds.

The organization claimed to have received more than $100 million in commitments from a foreign government donor but did not name the donor.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid suggested last week that the government was secretly funding the aid group through foreign “shell companies,” but this was quickly shot down by the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Israel does not fund the humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesman Omer Dostri. “Israel and the United States are working in full coordination and through various channels to cut off aid from reaching Hamas.”

In response to the Kan report, the Prime Minister’s Office and the office of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich insist: “The State of Israel is not funding humanitarian aid to Gaza.”