https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-providing-guns-to-gaza-jihadist-gang-to-bolster-opposition-to-hamas/Israel has been arming a criminal gang in the Gaza Strip as part of an effort to strengthen opposition to Hamas in the enclave, defense sources confirmed on Thursday following remarks on the matter by former defense minister Avigdor Liberman.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later confirmed the report, saying the move helped save Israeli soldiers’ lives.
Liberman, who heads the opposition Yisrael Beytenu party, told the Kan public broadcaster on Thursday morning that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had unilaterally approved the transfer of weapons to the Abu Shabab clan, an armed gang or militia that is opposed to Hamas’s rule in the Gaza Strip.
“The Israeli government is giving weapons to a group of criminals and felons, identified with Islamic State, at the direction of the prime minister,” Liberman charged. “To my knowledge, this did not go through approval by the cabinet.”
He claimed that Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar was aware of the decision to arm the group, “but I don’t know how much the IDF chief of staff was in on it.”
The group in question, which is sometimes described as a militia and sometimes as a criminal gang, is led by Yasser Abu Shabab, a member of a large clan in southern Gaza. It has been linked in the past to smuggling operations with Egyptian Jihadist groups, but it was not immediately clear why Liberman branded it as linked to the Islamic State.
His gang has been documented in recent days operating in an area near the Kerem Shalom border crossing under Israeli military control.
In the footage, which was published online by Abu Shabab, members of the group can be seen wearing military-style uniforms with the Palestinian flag and the words “Counter-Terrorism Mechanism” emblazoned on them.The Prime Minister’s Office, in response to Liberman’s comments, did not deny the allegations but said instead that Israel was “working to defeat Hamas through various means, based on the recommendations of all the heads of the security establishment.”
In a later statement, Netanyahu confirmed the move.
In the latest installment in a series of short interviews with advisor Topaz Luk his office has posted in recent weeks, Netanyahu said that “in consultation with security officials, we made use of clans in Gaza that are opposed to Hamas.”
“What’s wrong with that?” he continued. “It’s only good. It saves lives of IDF soldiers.”
“It’s extremely serious,” Netanyahu said of Liberman revealing the move and predicting that it won’t be investigated. “Publicizing it only does good for Hamas.
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“Netanyahu, who transferred billions to Hamas in suitcases full of cash, based on the incorrect belief that Hamas is an ‘asset,’ is now promoting a new dangerous concept: Arming a Gazan militia with ties to ISIS,” the politician wrote on X.
“Netanyahu is dangerous to Israel’s security,” he charged. “This is not a mistake. This is systematic. Netanyahu is selling Israel’s security for another day in office.”
