Despite US admission Hamas ‘may seize’ aid to Gaza, Biden announces $100m in Palestinian aid
“We know Hamas is going to
commandeer that money, and Hamas is going to use it to advance
terrorism,” stated Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a presidential candidate.
By David Swindle, Menachem Wecker, JNS
Later this week, U.S. President Joe Biden intends to ask Congress for
“an unprecedented support package for Israel’s defense,” he said today
at the David Kempinski Hotel in Tel Aviv. “The world will know that
Israel is stronger than ever, and my message to any state or any other
hostile actor thinking about attacking Israel remains the same as it was
a week ago: Don’t. Don’t. Don’t.”
Moments later, Biden announced “$100 million in new U.S. funding for
humanitarian assistance in both Gaza and the West Bank.” The monies will
“support more than 1 million displaced and conflict-affected
Palestinians, including emergency needs in Gaza,” the president said.
The announcement came less than two days after U.S. Secretary of
State Antony Blinken acknowledged, in remarks he delivered in Tel Aviv,
that there are concerns about aid packages reaching civilians who need
it.
“We share Israel’s concern that Hamas may seize or destroy aid
entering Gaza or otherwise preventing it from reaching the people who
need it,” Blinken said on Oct. 16.
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