Israel 'operated clans' in Gaza, Netanyahu says, after being accused of arming Palestinian militias
Former defence minister accuses Israeli government of working with armed groups to bolster Hamas opposition
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel has "operated clans" in Gaza in a video published on social media Thursday after an opposition leader accused him of arming Palestinian militias in order to bolster opposition to Hamas.
When asked about the allegations made by Avigdor Lieberman, leader of one of the opposition parties in the Knesset and a former defence minister, and whether he made them for political gain, Netanyahu said:.
"What did Lieberman leak? ... That with the advice of security forces, we have operated clans in Gaza who oppose Hamas. What's wrong with that? It is only good. It only saves IDF soldiers' lives."
In the video posted on his Facebook and X accounts, Netanyahu said releasing details of Israel's actions is "benefiting only Hamas," according to a translation of the original Hebrew from Reuters.
In the wake of Lieberman's comments, The Times of Israel reported that Israel had transferred weapons to Yasser Abu Shabab, a leader of a large clan in the Rafah area that is among those accused of looting humanitarian aid. Rafah is now under full Israeli army control. The report cited a defence source.
The New York Times reported similar details citing two Israeli officials close to the matter who told the paper that Israeli authorities had provided "support, including weapons, to Yasser Abu Shabab."
Abu Shabab denies receiving arms from Israel
A few hours after Netanyahu's video was posted on social media, Abu Shabab posted a statement on Facebook in which he claimed Israeli media reports were false and denied that he received weapons from Israel.
"We categorically reject these accusations and consider them a blatant attempt to distort the image of a grassroots force born from suffering—one that stood up to injustice, looting, and corruption," the statement read.
It went on to say that the weapons his group does use are from the "support of our own people." Abu Shabab said his clan would never be "a tool of the occupation" and called on Israel to present evidence to Palestinian people and the media.
Abu Shabab previously said that he was building up a force to secure aid deliveries into some parts of Gaza.
Aid sites shuttered on Friday
Meanwhile, aid distribution in Gaza was halted on Friday after the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) said overcrowding had made it unsafe to continue operations in the latest disruption to its troubled relief effort.
With severe food shortages plaguing the coastal enclave, fighting continued in many areas of the Gaza Strip.
Local health authorities said 16 Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes, mostly in northern Gaza, while the Israeli army said four of its soldiers were killed and five were wounded by an explosion in a building in Khan Younis to the south.
In a day of confusing messaging, the GHF first announced its distribution sites in southern Gaza were closed then it revealed that it had actually handed out food, before saying that it had had to close its gates as a precautionary measure.
"The distribution was conducted peacefully and without incident; however, it was paused due to excessive crowding that made it unsafe to proceed," it said in a statement.
As Palestinians across the war-ravaged Gaza Strip marked the start of one of Islam's most important holidays, Eid al-Adha, Israeli forces continued military operations that they say are needed to root out and destroy Hamas militants.
The Israeli military said four soldiers were killed in a booby-trapped building, which brought the army death toll to eight since the start of June.
Eid prayers held amid rubble
The army earlier issued new evacuation orders for areas in and around Gaza City, warning of an imminent attack.
With many residential areas of Gaza reduced to rubble by months of fighting, locals held Eid al-Adha prayer services in the open, next to bombed-out mosques and homes.
"As you can see, we are holding Eid prayers, while the bombing, shelling and planes are ongoing," said Umm Mahmoud in Khan Younis.
The United Nations has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine after an 11-week Israeli blockade of the enclave, with the rate of young children suffering from acute malnutrition nearly tripling.
The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May, overseeing a new model of aid distribution that the United Nations says is neither impartial nor neutral.
It suspended operations on Wednesday and asked the Israeli military to review security protocols after hospital officials said more than 80 people had been shot dead and hundreds wounded near distribution points between June 1 and 3.
After the two-month ceasefire broke down in March, Israel blockaded aid supplies into Gaza for 11 weeks, prompting a famine warning from a global hunger monitor. Israel, which has only partially lifted the blockade since, vets all aid into Gaza and accuses Hamas of stealing some of it, something the militant group denies.
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Israel has re-intensified an offensive against Gaza's dominant Hamas militant group since breaking a two-month-old ceasefire in March in a war triggered by the cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, led by Hamas, considered a terrorist organization by several countries including Canada.
The initial attacks killed 1,200 people in Israel, including several Canadian citizens.
Some 251 hostages were also taken, with around a couple dozen believed still alive, according to the Israeli government. While many of the remaining were freed in periodic prisoner exchanges, the bodies of other hostages have been repatriated, including Canadian citizen Judih Weinstein and her husband just this week.
Israel's military campaign in response to those attacks has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities.
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With files from Reuters