Iran has been putting increasing pressure on Hamas by reducing financial aid to the terrorist group over the past two months, an Arab intelligence source told Breitbart Jerusalem.
The source described the resulting financial crisis in Hamas as “unprecedented” and said the reduction in aid from Iran is meant to push Hamas to fully comply with Iranian policy on the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, political disputes in Lebanon and the issue of Palestinian reconciliation.
Inquiries by Breitbart Jerusalem have indeed shown that Hamas is suffering from growing financial troubles, a crisis that has purportedly been brought on by Iran’s insistence on keeping financial aid to the group at its current, reduced levels, almost of all of which goes to Hamas’ so-called military wing.
Last month, a security source said that Iran presented Hamas and Islamic Jihad with a list of conditions and demands for returning financial aid to its previous levels.
The Iranians demanded a clear commitment from Hamas to the Iranian axis of resistance, which also includes Hezbollah, the Syrian government, Iraq and the Houthis in Yemen. The source also said Iran expects that in the case of armed conflict between Israel and one of the axis members, Hamas and Islamic Jihad will “lead the Palestinian organizations against Israel so that the southern front will also be involved,” meaning the terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip would also attack Israel.
A source from within Hamas confirmed to Breitbart Jerusalem that the past two months have seen further cuts in the salaries paid to members of the terrorist organization’s “military wing.” While salaries had already been cut between 20-30%, these reductions have reached up to 50% over the last two months, the source said. READ MORE
