By Eric Vandenbroeck and co-workers

The Abu Shabab Militia

We all know the general storyline:  on 7 October 2023, Hamas and allied militants sparked the Gaza war by invading and attacking southern Israel, killing almost 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking more than 250 hostages. Following this, Israel retaliated by imposing a total blockade on Gaza, heavily bombing it, and invading it.

A discussion point came after Israeli media reports quoted defense sources as saying Netanyahu had authorized giving weapons to one particular group in the south of Gaza.

With this, several Israeli politicians have accused Netanyahu of endangering Israeli security.

"What's wrong with this?" Netanyahu says in a short video he's tweeted. "It only saves the lives of Israeli soldiers", he continues - "and publicizing it only helps Hamas".

What the Israeli prime minister is referring to are the reports that Israel, under his authorization, has been supplying weapons to a clan in Gaza led by a man called Yasser Abu Shabab.

The group, which some see as a militia or a criminal gang, has presented itself as an opposition force to Hamas.

It says it aims to protect trucks bringing aid into Gaza, but critics say it is doing the opposite and is looting them.

The revelations may have been brushed off by Benjamin Netanyahu, but they have the potential to develop into a serious new political scandal.

Israeli defense sources had earlier confirmed to local journalists that accusations made by the opposition politician Avigdor Lieberman were correct.

Netanyahu issued a video statement acknowledging that Israel had "activated" clans that oppose Hamas, saying the move would help save the lives of Israeli soldiers.

The prime minister made the statement after Avigdor Lieberman, a right-wing lawmaker and former deputy prime minister who is opposed to Netanyahu, leaked the news that Israel was arming Palestinian factions in Gaza and warned that the weapons could eventually be turned on Israel's troops, who are engaged in a large-scale offensive to take control of the coastal enclave and destroy Hamas.

Lieberman, who heads the Yisrael Beiteinu party, had told the public broadcaster, Kan, that Netanyahu had unilaterally approved the transfer of weapons to the Abu Shabab clan.

Smoke rising behind Israeli tanks in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, in May.

Lieberman claimed in an interview with an Israeli broadcaster that the "Israeli government is giving weapons to a group of criminals and felons identified with the Islamic State, at the direction of the prime minister." NPR has been unable to substantiate the claim.

Israeli media identified one of the recipients of Israeli support as a gang led by Yasser Abu Shabab, who has been accused by the U.N. of looting its aid convoys last year in areas of Gaza controlled by Israel's military.

But Abu Shabab has recently tried to rebrand himself as a militia leader opposed to Hamas and securing the delivery of food to Gazans, and has posted pictures of himself and his men armed and in uniform.

Hamas is calling on Palestinians to oppose the Israeli-supported militia, accusing Israel of creating chaos in Gaza. In a statement Thursday, the Abu Shabab group denied it was armed by Israel.

Israeli defense sources had earlier confirmed to local journalists that accusations made by the opposition politician Avigdor Lieberman were correct.

Lieberman, who heads the Yisrael Beiteinu party, had told the public broadcaster, Kan, that Netanyahu had unilaterally approved the transfer of weapons to the Abu Shabab clan.

"The Israeli government is giving weapons to a group of criminals and felons, identified with the Islamic State group," Lieberman said.

"To my knowledge, this did not go through approval by the cabinet," he added.

Defence sources subsequently confirmed that Israel had been arming the Abu Shabab clan with Kalashnikov rifles, including some that had been seized from Hamas.

The clan has been operating in Rafah, in an area under Israeli military control.

However, Yasser Abu Shabab posted online to "categorically reject" that Israel had supplied his group's weapons.

"Our weapons are simple, outdated, and came through the support of our people," he said.

Hamas sources have said that Abu Shabab's activities have become an issue, with one report in an Arabic newspaper saying that the Hamas armed wing had begun carrying out assassinations of members of the clan.

Netanyahu's office said that Israel "was working to defeat Hamas through various means, based on the recommendations of all the heads of the security establishment".

Strong criticism of the initiative has come from Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats in the Knesset.

In a social media post on X, he said: "Netanyahu is a threat to Israel's national security. Instead of bringing about a deal...bringing the hostages home and providing security for Israeli citizens, he is creating a new ticking time-bomb in Gaza".

 

 

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