The Hagvura Forum on Thursday morning sharply criticized the Knesset's policy regarding aid to the Gaza Strip, following the IDF's demand to reduce the volume of shipments.
In a statement, Hagvura Forum stressed: "The data revealed this morning is a slap in the face to the heroes who gave their lives, to their families, and to the soldiers still fighting on the ground in Gaza. It turns out that the State of Israel is channeling four times the needed amount of humanitarian aid to the enemy, knowing that it strengthens Hamas."
"It is unacceptable that the IDF fights terrorism with one hand, while the other hand funds that very same terrorism. We demand that the political echelon stop the neglect - aid must be provided only at the bare minimum necessary. Victory is not achieved by fattening the enemy, but by breaking it."
Earlier on Thursday morning, the IDF warned that the Hamas terrorist organization is strengthening significantly due to the volume of humanitarian trucks entering the Gaza Strip daily, as well as thanks to smuggling carried out through additional routes into the Strip.
Official data published by the IDF shows that during the period of the war in Gaza, several extensive humanitarian initiatives were completed, including the entry of 112,000 aid trucks, the arrival of 5,000 international humanitarian personnel to the Strip, and the airdrop of 13,000 food pallets.
In addition, 600,000 children were vaccinated against polio, and several aid crossings were operated during the war. The humanitarian effort also included the entry of medical equipment in impressive volumes of 55,000 tons and 1,700,000 tons of food.
In Phase A of the ceasefire agreement, 60,000 aid trucks, 900,000 tons of food, and 9,600 tons of medical equipment were brought in. Significant achievements were accomplished without a prominent humanitarian crisis during a high-intensity war, as a functioning aid system operated over time.
Today, approximately 600 trucks enter Gaza per day, and approximately 4,200 trucks per week. This is an enormous volume, four times the volume required for the Strip according to UN standards, which state that the humanitarian need is 80,000 tons of food per month, equaling approximately 134 trucks per day.
The IDF notes that smuggling of materials such as cigarettes, tobacco, electrical products, phones, and dual-use agricultural materials enter not only through aid trucks, but also through the crossings and through the Strip's border, under the cover of Israeli security activity taking place on the Strip's border, including through civilian contractors.