Hamas: The UNDP rebutted Israel’s claims against us

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri has said that the rebuttal provided by the UNDP to the Israeli claim that one of its employee exploited its resources to help the Movement in Gaza vindicated further that the Israeli government was lying about that. “The UN’s use of documents and figures to refute the Israeli accusations leveled against it about supporting the Hamas Movement has proved further that what Netanyahu relied on in this regard was a bunch of lies,” spokesman Abu Zuhri stated on Monday.

He expressed his confidence that Netanyahu’s lies cannot fool the international community and its organizations anymore. The UN Development Program (UNDP) has denied Israeli claims that detainee Wahid al-Barsh, a construction contractor working for the agency, deviated from its principles and abused its resources to aid Hamas.

Haaretz newspaper on Sunday quoted UNDP special representative Roberto Valent as saying that the agency conducted an investigation into the Israeli claim and found the material was transferred to the right place. Valent said that Barsh had no administrative powers or the ability to determine the destination where the rubble was to be transported.

In a statement, the UNDP said “it works in partnership and coordination with the Palestinian Authority to implement projects in Gaza, including the rubble removal project.” The statement stressed that Hamas had nothing to do with the organization’s work.

“There was no diversion of rubble from its designated location to Hamas,” the statement said. “The rubble was delivered by UNDP in coordination with the Palestinian Authority to a civilian area. There were no signs of Hamas presence in that area at the time.”