Qatar’s Funding of Hamas Sparks Political Controversy in Israel

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Netanyahu‘s office denies receiving any intelligence document confirming the use of Qatari grant funds to finance “terrorism.”

According to Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) “issued a clear warning” to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about six years ago regarding “the leakage of Qatari funds to the military wing of Hamas in Gaza,” reopening the debate over Qatar’s funding of Hamas, which contributed to the October attacks.

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The report mentions that Shin Bet’s then-chief, Nadav Argaman, sent a “highly confidential” message to Netanyahu in 2019, stating that “we are tracking the leakage of Qatari funds to Hamas’s military wing.” However, the Prime Minister responded by saying, “I heard, we will continue the operation,” according to Kan 11 Channel.

This information comes as Netanyahu faces increasing criticism within Israel regarding his government’s handling of Qatari funding for Gaza, particularly after the October 7th attacks and subsequent accusations that Hamas used the funds to bolster its military strength.

The Military Intelligence Directorate (Aman) later joined the Shin Bet’s warnings, but the Israeli government continued to allow the transfer of funds to the sector.

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In response to the report, the Prime Minister’s office denied receiving any intelligence documents confirming the use of Qatari funds for financing “terrorism.” A statement clarified that “security agencies confirmed that the funds were directly allocated to fuel, needy families, and salaries of employees,” adding that Hamas began transferring funds from its civil budget, not from the Qatari grant, to its military wing in March 2020 due to financial difficulties.

Qatar earlier this month criticized a Shin Bet investigation claiming that the country’s aid to Gaza over the years contributed to strengthening Hamas before the October 7th attack.

Doha insisted that “no aid has been delivered to Hamas‘s political or military wings,” accusing Shin Bet of “blaming Qatar” in its report regarding the failures that led to the Hamas attack.

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Shin Bet pointed out Israel’s long-standing policy of facilitating Qatari payments to Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas, among many other factors.

Israeli media reported that the official purpose of Qatari payments was not to fund Hamas itself, but some questioned whether this had ultimately happened. The government was criticized for ignoring the possibility of the funds being diverted, arguing that Hamas, deprived of legitimate payments, would simply use its savings to fund terrorism instead.

A summary of the Shin Bet investigation states that between 2018 and 2021, Israel approved cash payments for the salaries of Hamas officials, as well as large sums of money sent to needy families. It added that “the flow of money from Qatar to Gaza and its delivery to Hamas‘s military wing” was a factor in strengthening Hamas.

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A statement from Qatar’s International Media Office rejected “the false accusations” from Shin Bet, calling them “yet another example of deviation driven by self-interest in Israeli politics.” The statement specified that Qatar “has provided humanitarian support to Gaza families for many years, including basic supplies such as food and medicine, along with providing electricity for homes.”

Doha added, “It is well known both within Israel and internationally that all the aid sent by Qatar to Gaza was transferred with the full knowledge and supervision of current and previous Israeli administrations and its security agencies, including Shin Bet.”

Doha insisted that “no aid was delivered to Hamas’s political or military wings,” and stated that the funds for families were under the supervision of the United Nations through programs approved by Israel.

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In this critical moment, the International Media Office stated that Shin Bet and other Israeli security agencies should focus on rescuing remaining hostages and finding a solution that ensures long-term regional security, rather than resorting to scapegoating Qatar to prolong their political survival. According to them, the claims that Qatari aid was delivered to Hamas are completely false and are aimed at prolonging the war.

Despite its frustration, Qatar declared that it would continue to play the role of mediator between Israel and Hamas “because of its belief that diplomacy is the only path toward a better future for Palestinians and Israelis.”

The divisions arose as Shin Bet investigates ties between Netanyahu‘s assistants and Qatar, following allegations that Netanyahu‘s former spokesperson, Eli Feldstein, accused of compromising national security by stealing and leaking Israeli military secrets, had worked for Qatar via an international firm contracted by Doha to provide favorable stories about Qatar to Israeli journalists.

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The Qatari Prime Minister denied last month knowing about his country’s hiring of one of Netanyahu‘s assistants.

Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Netanyahu was the originator of the Qatari payments initiative to Gaza after failing at a Saudi plan to reconstruct Gaza following the 2014 Israel-Hamas war, which was meant to replace Hamas with a renewed Palestinian Authority.

According to the report, Netanyahu sought to avoid the Palestinian Authority ruling Gaza and preferred Qatar to support Hamas’s government rather than seeing Gaza go to another Palestinian group. (Netanyahu publicly supported and defended Qatari funding for Gaza, including statements made to reporters in 2018).

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