Israel opposition leader says Netanyahu arming 'equivalent of Isis' gangs in Gaza
Opposition leader Avigdor Lieberman has accused Israeli forces, under the approval of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of arming 'crime families' in Gaza.
The accusations add weight to the claim that Israel has used Palestinian gangs to disrupt the distribution of aid in the besieged enclave.
Lieberman, the head of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, is a former finance minister and deputy prime minister.
"Israel has provided assault rifles and light weapons to crime families in Gaza, on Netanyahu's orders," Lieberman told Israeli public broadcaster Kan on Thursday.
"The weapons are being transferred to criminals and offenders and are being directed at Israel.
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'In my opinion, it did not pass cabinet approval. The head of the Shin Bet knows, I'm not sure the chief of staff knows. We're talking about the equivalent of Isis in Gaza,' he added, referencing the Islamic State group.
He added that 'no one can guarantee that these weapons will not be directed at Israel. We have no way of monitoring or tracking them.'
In response, Netanyahu's office said: 'Israel is working to defeat Hamas in various ways, on the recommendation of all heads of the security establishment.'
There have been several reports in recent months of Israel allegedly backing, or turning a blind eye to, armed gangs looting aid and food warehouses in Gaza.
Rocks, looting, protests: How Israelis are blocking Gaza-bound aid trucks Read More »
Al Jazeera Arabic's Anas al-Sharif reported in early May that Israeli forces attacked shopowners and local Gaza security teams who were attempting to protect shops from looting and chaos.
Asaad al-Kafarna, a police officer in Gaza, was killed by Israeli forces near a restaurant on 2 May after pursuing armed looters accused of collaborating with Israel's military.
In response to such looting by gangs, a number of influential families in Gaza published statements denouncing the scenes.
'These gangs act in alignment with the goals of the occupation,' the Madhoun family wrote at the time.
In November, an internal UN memo obtained by the Washington Post revealed that gangs 'may be benefiting from a passive if not active benevolence' or 'protection' from Israeli troops.
One such gang leader, according to the memo, established a 'military-like compound' in an area 'restricted, controlled and patrolled' by Israel's military.
Commentators have suggested that by backing criminal gangs and targeting members of Gaza's civil administration, Israel was attempting to create a power vacuum and lawlessness.
Massacres of aid seekers
A CNN investigation published on Thursday concluded that the Israeli military was behind a deadly shooting of civilians seeking aid near Rafah in southern Gaza over the weekend, which killed more than 30 people.
More than a dozen eyewitnesses, including those wounded in the attack, said Israeli troops shot at crowds in volleys of gunfire that occurred sporadically through the early hours of Sunday morning, the investigation said.
Trump administration on the defensive after Gaza aid plan spirals into chaos Read More »
Multiple videos geolocated by CNN placed the gunfire near a roundabout where hundreds of Palestinians had gathered about half a mile (800 metres) away from the militarised aid site.
The Israeli military has denied its troops fired on civilians in or around the centre, and both it and the aid centre's administrator accused Hamas of sowing false rumours.
The controversial US-backed initiative to distribute aid, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), said on Thursday it would not hand out any food to starving Palestinians for a second day, saying operations will only restart when maintenance and repair work at its distribution sites are complete.
The suspension of the GHF's aid distribution system comes after more than 100 Palestinians were gunned down near its sites in less than a week.
Earlier this week, eyewitnesses and local officials told Middle East Eye that Israeli troops opened fire directly on civilians, with many of the fatalities receiving gunshot wounds to their head or chest.
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