Amid the ongoing operation by Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in the Gaza Strip, the forces have put forward many claims against Iran, and this time they boast of having intact evidence. The IDF has alleged that they have uncovered documents from a tunnel in the Gaza Strip, that indicate direct links and coordination with Iran of the Hamas terror group.
Addressing a press conference, IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the evidence indicated that over USD 150 million dollars were transferred from Iran to Hamas between the years 2014 and 2020.
He said that the Israeli military will publish some of the “Intelligence information found there by our forces – indicating a direct “connection” from Iran to Hamas and more so – to Yahya Sinwar.”
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IDF troops from the Paratroopers Brigade encountered an armed terrorist cell and thwarted it. The soldiers also located large quantities of weapons including AK-47 rifles, grenades and explosive devices. pic.twitter.com/fMNaPNWQzg— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) February 7, 2024
“We found official Hamas documents from 2020 detailing the funds transferred by Iran between the years 2014 and 2020 to Hamas and to Sinwar. More than one hundred and fifty million dollars were transferred from Iran to Hamas,” he added. He said that this was another example of how “Iran exports terror across the Middle East.”
“The terror that Iran exports and produces is a global problem,” he said. Israeli intelligence passes this information to its partners across the world for verification.
Spokesperson Hagari further highlighted that they had found a safe containing over 20 million shekels in cash.
“In the same subterranean space, we also found a safe with banknotes and bags containing more than twenty million shekels in cash, as you can see in the blue and black bags addressed to a clear location,” the IDF spokesperson added.
He emphasized that large sums of cash are kept in organized compounds underground for the personal use of senior Hamas officials.
“These amounts join tens of millions of shekels we located during the war in Hamas tunnels in cases filled with millions of dollars,” he said. Additionally, he said, “Hamas leaders invested the money in their personal survival and that of their families underground.” Emphasizing that 133 days have passed since the war began, the IDF spokesperson said that they had not forgotten the hostages for a moment. “We are making every effort to bring them home and to extract all information about them and their condition,” he said.
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The IDF, he said, is accompanying the families of the hostages during these complex and difficult days, and their representatives provided the families with all the verified information about their loved ones. With this, they have told 31 families that their loved ones who are hostages are no longer alive and have confirmed their deaths, the spokesperson said.
“We continue to operate in order to create the conditions to bring all the hostages home. This is a moral, national, and international obligation. It is our compass and it is how we will continue to act,” Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said.
