American envoy Jason Greenblatt lashed out at Iran and at Hamas on Sunday over their efforts to destabilize the Middle East.
"Hamas should be improving the lives of those it purports to govern, but instead chooses to increase violence and cause misery for the people of Gaza," U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Representative for International Negotiations tweeted Sunday.
The tweet included a link to a Jerusalem Post article about a recently foiled effort by Hamas to smuggle large amounts of explosives disguised as medical supplies into the Gaza Strip.
"Imagine what the people of Gaza could do with the $100 million Iran gives Hamas annually that Hamas uses for weapons and tunnels to attack Israel!" Greenblatt tweeted.
He also demanded that Hamas return the remains of two Israeli soldiers – Lt. Hadar Goldin and Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul – that the organization has been holding in Gaza since Operation Protective Edge in mid-2014. As well as the bodies of the two soldiers, Hamas is believed to be holding three Israeli civilians who crossed into Gaza voluntarily.
"Hamas must also permit the release of Israeli civilians Avraham Abera Mengistu, Hisham al-Sayed and Juma Ibrahim Abu Ghanima," Greenblatt tweeted.
Greenblatt has been one of the key figures in the American administration leading efforts to renew the stagnant Israeli-Palestinian peace process. He has visited Israel and the Palestinian Authority multiple times in recent months.
In one of his tweets on Sunday, he issued a strong rebuke to Iran for its efforts to use Hamas as its proxy against Israel, at the expense of the Palestinian people.
"Iran spends almost a billion dollars a year sponsoring terrorism in Lebanon, Israel and West Bank/Gaza. This blood money only increases violence and does nothing to help the Palestinian people," Greenblatt wrote.
"The corrupt regime in Tehran squanders the resources of the Iranian people on military adventures throughout the region instead of investing at home and promoting peace abroad," he added.
Meanwhile, Israel's Diplomatic-Security Cabinet is expected to convene on Tuesday to discuss recent tensions on Israel's borders with Lebanon and Syria in the north.
IDF Chief of General Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot briefed ministers on Sunday and presented the military's intelligence assessment for 2018. Eizenkot said the chances of war breaking out are not high, but a rapid escalation that would lead to a conflagration is becoming ever more likely.
He warned that the Gaza Strip is on the brink of a humanitarian crisis, and such a crisis would increase the likelihood of resumed hostilities.
Eizenkot also talked about the Iran's efforts to arm Hezbollah in Lebanon with precision missiles. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sounded the alarm on this matter when he visited Moscow last week.
