08 June 2021; MEMO: Israel has announced that it will not continue transferring Qatar's financial aid to Gaza the same way it did before the latest Israeli offensive on the besieged coastal enclave, Sama news agency reported yesterday.
Sama reported Israel's public broadcaster saying that Israel hopes to have the money transferred via the Palestinian Authority (PA) or international organisations.
According to Sama, the Qatari financial aid should arrive in Gaza this week, but the mechanisms of sending it to Gaza have caused tensions in Israel.
Meanwhile, the Walla news website reported former Mossad chief, Yossi Cohen, suggesting that it was a mistake to rely on Qatari funds in an effort to bring calm to the Gaza Strip.
"Until Operation Guardian of the Walls, we had hoped that Qatari involvement and Qatari money would lead us to a settlement with Hamas," Walla reported Cohen saying. "But things got a little out of control."
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that the death toll from the Israeli military raids on the besieged enclave which took place between 10-21 May reached 254 persons, including 66 children, 39 women, and 17 elders, in addition to 1,948 wounded Palestinians.
