DistantNews
Support us
🇮🇱 Israel /Elections & Politics

FM Sa'ar reveals links between Hamas, Global Sumud Flotilla at US summit on political terrorism

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar revealed alleged links between Hamas and the Global Sumud Flotilla at a US summit on political terrorism.
  • Sa'ar asserted that the flotilla, which aimed to breach Israel's naval blockade on Gaza, was financed and operated by Hamas through a shell company.
  • He accused such groups of using Western leftist activists to legitimize terrorist organizations and stated that media outlets have fallen for this strategy.

At a US summit on political terrorism in Washington, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar detailed alleged connections between Hamas and activists involved with the Global Sumud Flotilla. Sa'ar asserted that these ties pose a significant threat to democratic values, describing an alliance between extremist elements and radical left-wing movements in the West.

a real challenge to the values ​​of democracy and freedom.

— Gideon Sa'arSa'ar described the threat posed by the alliance between extremists and Western political movements.

Sa'ar presented the Global Sumud Flotilla as a prime example of how terrorist organizations disguise themselves behind activist movements. He claimed the flotilla's repeated attempts to breach Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, under the pretense of delivering humanitarian aid, were actually designed to serve Hamas's interests. "Hamas documents seized by the IDF indicate financing, operational involvement, and covert ownership of the vessels through a Spanish shell company," Sa'ar stated.

Hamas documents seized by the IDF indicate financing, operational involvement, and covert ownership of the vessels through a Spanish shell company.

— Gideon Sa'arSa'ar presented evidence of Hamas's alleged financial and operational ties to the flotilla.

He further alleged that the organization behind the flotilla operated through a network linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, providing "legitimacy and civilian cover" to terrorist goals. Sa'ar accused these groups of "whitewashing of terrorism" by recruiting Western activists to mobilize support and exert public pressure. He specifically criticized Western media, including the BBC and The New York Times, for allegedly falling for this strategy.

thereby giving legitimacy and civilian cover to terrorist organizations and their goals.

— Gideon Sa'arSa'ar explained how these networks allegedly support terrorist groups.

The minister highlighted specific activists, including British Hamas operative Zaher Birawi and Brazilian activist Tiago Avila, citing documents that allegedly link them to Hamas and Hezbollah. Sa'ar presented a 2021 document signed by former Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, identifying Birawi as a key operative involved in organizing flotillas for over 15 years and heading Hamas's European wing.

whitewashing of terrorism and its goals

— Gideon Sa'arSa'ar accused organizations of masking the true aims of terrorism.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog