A Hamas official said on Monday that Qatar will start sending Gaza up to $10 million worth of Egyptian fuel a month under a plan to fund civil service pay in the impoverished Palestinian enclave ruled by the Islamist terrorist group.
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Qatar, a major Hamas backer, has pledged some $360 million for Gaza's reconstruction following the Islamist terrorist groups' last conflict with Israel in May.
The Gulf energy-rich state has funneled some $1 billion into Gaza since 2012. Since 2018, it has been providing Hamas with monthly payments averaging $20 million, essentially covering Hamas salaries for its civil servants and providing a monthly $100 stipends to scores of impoverished families.
Last week Qatar announced that it signed agreements with Egypt to supply fuel and building materials to Gaza.
A source familiar with the talks said Qatar and Hamas had not yet finalized an agreement over the initiative, which would see Hamas sell the fuel to Gaza petrol stations and use the proceeds to pay civil servants, including doctors and teachers.
Qatar and Hamas are still in discussions over checks Doha requires to ensure the proceeds of the fuel sold to reach the civil servants it is intended for, the source added.
The initiative would help bypass Israeli curbs on Qatari aid to the enclave, which harbors alongside Hamas the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other terrorist groups.
Israel used to permit the Gulf state to send millions of dollars into Gaza through Israeli border crossings to support Hamas' cash-strapped government. But Israeli authorities halted such Qatari aid in May, demanding more checks on how the money is used.
"According to the agreement, Qatar will pay the equivalent of its monthly aid to Gaza civil servants, which is between $7 and $10 million, in fuel," said Salama Marouf, director of Gaza's government media office.
The fuel "will come through the [Egyptian] border crossing, and will then be sold in the market ... the proceeds will then go to the treasury of the Gaza finance ministry, which will later pay it out to employees."
Marouf said the cash raised from selling the fuel would help pay around 40,000 civil servants in Gaza, home to 2 million Palestinians.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office and Defense Ministry declined to comment on the issue.
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