Two official documents from Hamas found in the Gaza Strip reveal that the organization is directly involved in funding and carrying out the Sumud flotilla to Gaza.
The documents indicate a close connection between the flotilla leadership and Hamas, particularly with the PCPA - a body operating on behalf of Hamas in the international arena.
The PCPA, the Palestinian Conference for Palestinians Abroad, was founded in 2018 and is considered an official external arm of Hamas. The organization, operating under a civilian guise, serves as a central tool for Hamas in leading hostile activities against Israel outside the Gaza Strip, including demonstrations, marches and flotillas.
The first document, found in the Gaza Strip, is a 2021 letter signed by Hamas' head of the political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh. In the letter, Haniyeh calls on the PCPA chairman for unity, and publicly grants the organization his blessing. The State of Israel designated the PCPA as a terrorist organization already in 2021.
The second document, found at a Hamas post in Gaza, includes a list of PCPA activists who are senior figures in Hamas. Among the names appearing are Zaher Birawi, who serves as head of the Hamas cell within the organization in Britain and is identified as having led the protest flotillas to Gaza for about 15 years, and Saef Abu Kashk, a Hamas activist in Spain.
The documents also show that Abu Kashk is the CEO of Cyber Neptune, a shell company in Spain that owns dozens of vessels of the Sumud flotilla. The implication is that the flotilla's vessels are in practice owned by Hamas.