Israeli banks pay Hamas salaries
Photo: AFP
Israeli cash ends up in Hamas' hands
Money laundering authority is investigating how money transferred by Discount Bank to the Bank of Palestine ended up going to Hamas forces in Gaza; Discount: After money is transferred, we can't control where it goes
The Justice Ministry's money laundering authority opened an investigation into how money transferred by Discount Bank to the Bank of Palestine ended up in the hands of Hamas' security forces in Gaza, Reuters reported.
The news agency quotes sources involved in the investigation that claim that the Islamic Palestinian Bank received the money from the Bank of Palestine, which in turn received the money from Discount as part of an existing agreement between the two banks.
The sources also said that Discount had no way of knowing that the money was transferred to Hamas forces despite Israeli efforts to prevent any money from arriving to Hamas.
Discount: We can't control what is done with the money
A spokeswoman for Discount Bank said that the bank did not have control of the money after it was transferred to the Bank of Palestine in a legal manner. What is done with the funds afterwards is not in Discount's control, the spokeswoman for the bank said.According to the investigation, three deposits of $750,000 were made in an account belonging to Hamas' Executive Force before the account was removed from the list of those that receive a salary from President Abbas.
A spokesman for the Justice Ministry told Yedioth Ahronoth: "For legal reasons, the money-laundering authority does not usually deal with reports that it receives. It is the legal responsibility of the banks that transfer money to the PA to report (suspicious activity). Every suspicious report is directly transferred to and brought to the attention of security forces. Beyond this, we cannot comment."
Organizations representing victims of terror consider lawsuits
The law in Israel and the US prevents the transfer of funds to Hamas, classified as a terrorist organization. This law has caused Israeli banks to fear that money that they have transferred that has ended up in Hamas' hands may make them liable to lawsuits filed by organizations representing victims of terror.Last Wednesday, Bank Hapoalim announced that it would cease to provide Gaza with Israeli bills and coins and that it would terminate its involvement with banks in Gaza after the territory was declared a "hostile entity" by the Israeli government.
It was made known to Yedioth Ahronoth that Discount Bank was on the verge of taking a similar step after the Holydays.
