Qatari envoy Mohammed El-Amadi delivered the second of six monthly payments in three suitcases filled with $15 billion in cash on Thursday, right on schedule, to Hamas leaders in Gaza.
El-Amadi made the payment in a delivery from Israel through the Erez land crossing into Gaza.
The grant was divided into three sections, with $5 million dollars allocated for civil service salaries, $5 million for unemployed Gazans and the remaining $5 million for relief and humanitarian aid support, according to The Jerusalem Post.
A similar payment was made last month, after which Hamas thanked Israel for its cooperation by launching another round of violence at the Gaza border.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified allowing the payment to go through by saying Israel had no choice due to the humanitarian issues impacting Gaza — and as a result, beginning to affect the welfare of Israeli citizens in the south as well. One example, he said, was the raw sewage seeping from Gaza into the water table as far north as Ashkelon due to the lack of proper infrastructure in the enclave.
With Qatari funding, he said, Israel has received the signatures and fingerprints of every individual who has received the money, which means the Israeli government knows where every dollar goes. It’s much closer supervision than was possible under the auspices of the Palestinian Authority, which has in any case refused to be involved and which up to now has done what it can to sabotage any resolution of the problems with Gaza.