LIFE IS HARD AT THE NEW GAZA STRIP BEACH RESORT, BUT HAMAS ENJOYS IT ANYWAY.
The Blue Beach Resort, made up of 162 chalet-style rooms set among palm trees and overlooking the Mediterranean, hopes to become the "most significant tourist attraction and entertainment venue in Gaza,"
COST? $29 MILLION.
BUT WESTERNERS ARE ONLY SHOWN THOSE BOMBED-OUT POVERTY-STRICKEN AREAS, RIGHT?
NEED A MERCEDES? GAZA HAS THEM!
Moemen Abu Ras is very proud of the Mercedes in his car business in Gaza City.
He opened this dealership months ago, importing cars from Germany via Israel and selling them in the Gaza Strip. You can see photos of him and the cars in the photo gallery <here>.
Need a good workout?
The techno gym in Gaza is a great place to get in shape!
It also has a very nice juice bar.
HOW MANY HOMES WOULD THE PRICE OF THIS BUILT?
Need to work on that tan so you look good for the cameras when you're showing them Gaza's ruin?
Not a problem for Hamas! One can also have a nice meal at a nice restaurant in Gaza.
BELOW, IF THINGS GET TOO HOT IN THE STRIP, HOP ON YOUR LEAR JET LIKE THESE HAMAS GUYS AND BUG OUT TO QATAR OR KUWAIT.
RECOGNIZE ANYONE?
LEADERS OF HAMAS, ALL.
LEADERS OF HAMAS, ALL.
...
SOME ARTICLES CALL IT "5-STAR GAZA", THE GAZA NO ONE KNOWS EXISTS.
"Media images beamed from the Gaza Strip focus on the territory’s abundant miseries. But rising from the rubble of last summer’s devastating war with Israel are a handful of new luxury-car dealerships, boutiques selling designer jeans and, coming soon to a hip downtown restaurant, “Sushi Nights.”
HAMAS AND MIDDLE CLASS GAZA
Gaza’s corrupt leaders and other Hamas officials now boast of having over 1,200 millionaires after 7 years of successful war profiteering, skimming and theft.
OTHER MUSLIMS PUBLICLY BLAST HAMAS
In recent media interviews, Professor Ahmed Karima of Al-Azhar University in Egypt noted that in recent years Hamas has blossomed into a movement of millionaires.
According to Karima, Hamas can boast no fewer than 1,200 millionaires among its leadership and mid-level officials.
That assertion was backed up by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who in 2012 estimated the number of Gaza millionaires to be 800.
Dr. Ibrahim Abrash, a former Palestinian Minister of Culture from the Gaza Strip, recently surprised many Palestinians by publishing an article that included a scathing attack on both the PA and Hamas, holding them responsible for the continued suffering of their people.
[FOR THOSE WHO NEED TO, JUST RIGHT CLICK ON THE ARTICLE AND ASK FOR ENGLISH TRANSLATION...IT MAY TAKE ASKING TWO TIMES.]
Abrash’s criticism of Hamas and the PA — whom he openly holds responsible for the suffering of their people — actually reflects the widespread sentiment among Palestinians. Over the past few years, a growing number of Palestinians have come to realize that their leaders have failed them again and again and are now aware that both Hamas and the PA, as corrupt as ever, are hindering efforts to rebuild the Gaza Strip.
It is almost unheard of for a prominent Palestinian figure to hold the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas equally responsible for corruption and abuse of power.
In his article, Dr. Abrash also holds the two Palestinian parties responsible for the delay in rebuilding thousands of houses that were destroyed or damaged in the Gaza Strip during last year’s military conflict between Israel and Hamas. He points out that Hamas and the PA have been holding each other responsible for the suffering of Palestinians. “Sometimes, they also put all the blame on Israel for all that is happening in the Gaza Strip,” he said.
Referring to the ongoing power struggle between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, which reached its peak with the violent takeover by Hamas of the entire Gaza Strip in the summer of 2007, Dr. Abrash accused the two rival parties of exploiting their dispute to cover up corruption in vital sectors of Palestinian society.
“In light of the division [between the PA-controlled West Bank and Hamas-run Gaza], corruption and absence of accountability have become widespread,” Dr. Abrash wrote. “This division has led to the collapse of the political system and the system of values, and an increase in corruption. This has also allowed many opportunists and hypocrites to reach important positions, where they do anything they want without being held accountable.”
And while many in the international community and media continue to hold Israel fully responsible for the plight of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Dr. Abrash offers a completely different perspective.
Noting that the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip have fallen victim to the power struggle between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, he says that no one today knows who is supposed to be helping the people living there.
“The interests of the people have been lost as result of the two parties’ rivalry,” Dr. Abrash said. “No one knows who is in charge of the people’s needs in the Gaza Strip — Hamas, which is the de facto authority in the Gaza Strip, or the Palestinian Authority and its national consensus government. Or is it UNRWA and the donors who are responsible? Or is it the sole responsibility of Israel as an occupation state? To whom should the people direct their complaints?”
Referring to widespread corruption under the PA in the West Bank, the former Palestinian minister reveals that Palestinian academic institutions, including universities and colleges, have become “commercial projects for granting certificates that have no scientific value or content.”
Dr. Abrash points out that no one knows whether universities and colleges in the Gaza Strip are subject to the supervision of the Ministry of Education in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip.
He also blasts the PA’s Ministry of Civilian Affairs for exploiting and extorting Palestinians who seek travel permits, especially those wishing to leave the Gaza Strip. He goes on to hold Hamas responsible for “harassing” Palestinians who wish to leave the Gaza Strip through the Erez border crossing (to Israel). Dr. Abrash claims that some Palestinians are forced to pay bribes to Palestinian officials to obtain a travel permit.
“Many people have been subjected to blackmail and procrastination [by Palestinian officials] after Israel eased travel restrictions at the Bet Hanoun [Erez] border crossing,” he said. “But the people are afraid to complain, out of fear that they would be denied travel permits in the future. What is happening at the border crossing has created favoritism and bribery.”
Dr. Abrash concludes his article with a rhetorical question: “Isn’t it shameful and irritating that while Israel has been issuing travel permits for those with special needs, some influential [Palestinian] officials are placing obstacles? Until when will they continue to manipulate and blackmail the people of the Gaza Strip?”
Dr. Abrash’s article represents a rare voice of sanity among Palestinians. This is a voice that does not blame all the miseries of Palestinians on Israel alone and holds the Palestinians leadership also responsible for the continued suffering of their people.
However, this is a voice that is rarely given a platform in mainstream media outlets in the West, whose journalists continue to focus almost entirely on stories that reflect negatively on Israel.
Western journalists based in the Middle East tend to ignore Palestinians who are critical of the Palestinian Authority or Hamas. That is because such criticism does not fit the narrative according to which Israel is solely responsible for all the bad things that happen to the Palestinians.
But when will the international community and media wake up and comprehend what many Palestinians came to understand years ago, namely that the real tragedy of the Palestinian people has been — and remains — bad and irresponsible leadership? Unfortunately, this is unlikely to happen as long as the world continues to see Israel as the villain.
BILLIONS FOR GAZA BECAME BILLIONS IN THE POCKETS OF HAMAS AND THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY.
HAMAS LEADER LIVING IN LUXURY IN QATAR
Mash'al lives a life of luxury in Qatar (images: Sma-syria.com, July 11, 2014)
Egyptian Columnist To Khaled Mash'al: Leave Your Hotel In Qatar And Come Fight From Gaza.
VOICES FROM GAZA
Saudi Journalist: Hamas Is Sacrificing The People Of Gaza.
How the Palestinian Authority Fleeced the European Union
Since 1994, the EU ALONE has provided certain representatives of the Palestinian people with financial support of nearly €5.6 billion.
Discounting Arab and American contributors to this scam, Europe gives the PA 40% ABOVE the annual budget of Sydney, Australia, a city of roughly the same population.
MANY NATIONS PUSHING TO END AID TO HAMAS AND FATAH.
US Congressman Jim Gerlach has written to Sec. of State John Kerry asking that the US stop foreign aid to the PA because it pays salaries and stipends to “compensate convicted terrorists and/or their families.”
Dear Secretary Kerry:
Recent news reports have indicated that the PA has provided monetary payments or salaries to individuals convicted of committing acts of terrorism, including those recently released as part of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. According to such reports (i.e., reports published by PMW, -Ed.), these salaries or stipends are provided by the PA to convicted terrorists… What is the U.S. Department of State doing specifically to immediately halt any U.S. taxpayer dollars going to the PA until this program is stopped?” U.S. foreign aid…. must not be used by the PA directly or indirectly to compensate convicted terrorists and/or their families… I look forward to your swift response… Jim Gerlach, Member of Congress, [Dec. 5, 2013]“
HOLLAND WANTS OUT OF AID TO TERRORISTS
In December 2013, the Dutch Parliament in an overwhelming majority vote called on their government to demand the PA stop salary payments to terrorist prisoners.
This is the Motion which was passed in Dutch Parliament:
“The [Dutch] parliament … noting that since 2011 the Palestinian Authority has been giving money to convicted Palestinians in Israeli prisons (i.e., Palestinians convicted of terror offenses); whereas each [prisoner] can count on a monthly payment of € 282 for a sentence of less than three years, rising to € 2,419 if convicted for a sentence of more than 30 years; noting that those punished in the highest [salary] category include those responsible for terrorist attacks in which innocent children, women and men have been killed, [the Dutch parliament] calls on the [Dutch] Government in its bilateral contacts with the Palestinian Authority to demand it stop this support as it can be interpreted as encouragement for crime.” [Voted in Dutch Parliament, Nov. 27, 2013″]
BRITAIN IS SICK OF SENDING AID?
British Parliament:
MP Henderson:
“A culture of hate has wormed its way into the very fibre of Palestinian society… No peace agreement will be able to guarantee peace… if a generation of Palestinians is growing up indoctrinated to hate Israel, Jews and the West.”
NORWAY PROTESTS AID, CALLS IT PAYING TERRORISTS
Norwegian Parliament:
MP Morten Høglund:
“We must use the power we have, and as a major donor to the PA, we must fight fire with fire and say that we will stop the aid unless the PA takes immediate action to stop this type of hate message.”
Four Norwegian opposition parties signed this statement, just before they won the recent elections:
“[We] find it unacceptable that Norwegian money goes directly or indirectly to fund financial aid for terrorists.”
After their election victory these parties formed a new government and significant changes in Norwegian policy are expected."
DENMARK SAYS ENOUGH...NO MORE AID TO TERROR
Danish Parliament:
MP Søren Espersen to Foreign Minister Villy Søvndal:
“Norway has started [investigating its funding of the PA], the UK has started… What will the [DANISH] Foreign Minister do to ensure us that our money is spent on [the intended] purpose, and not on terrorists?”
SWEDEN JOINS THE PROTEST OF AID TO TERROR
Swedish Parliament proposed legislation:
“Sweden and the EU cannot justify paying sizeable financial aid to the PA without requiring… that the PA immediately cease … financing terrorist activities and rewarding terrorists imprisoned in Israel. Therefore Sweden is suspending aid to PA.”
AND IN AMERICA, THE PUSH TO STOP THE FLOW OF FUNDS FOR MILLIONAIRES IN CHARGE IN GAZA AND THE WEST BANK...
The Wall Street Journal summed up:
”A report by Palestinian Media Watch recently revealed that British taxpayers have been paying salaries to terrorists… Many British taxpayers, struggling to pay their family’s way through a recession, might rightly wonder why their money is going to pay as much as £2,000 a month to people serving the longest sentences.”
Seems like the word is spreading beyond Europe…
The Palestinian Authority squandered nearly €2 billion ($2.7 billion) in European aid through corruption and mismanagement, a British newspaper claimed Sunday, leaking the contents of a not-yet-published European document.
According to the article, in Britain’s Sunday Times, the European Court of Auditors (ECA), an EU organ set up in 1975 to audit the EU’s income and spending, found that Europe had little control over €1.95 billion ($2.64 billion) spent in the West Bank and Gaza between 2008 and 2012, noting “significant shortcomings.”
A Palestinian opinion poll conducted in July 2012 found that 71 percent of respondents believed that corruption existed in PA institutions under the control of President Mahmoud Abbas. Some 57% of respondents said the same of Hamas-controlled institutions in the Gaza Strip.
Reports in November revealed that the PA gave at least $50,000 as a grant to each terrorist released in “gestures” to the peace talks. The released terrorists were also given monthly salaries ranging from 10,000 shekels ($2,800) to 14,000 shekels ($4,000).
Abbas’s mentor and predecessor, Yasser Arafat was accused of embezzling billions of dollars of Palestinian money.
This perceived corruption of the Fatah leadership is believed to have contributed to a convincing win by Hamas in the January 2006 parliamentary election. Fatah leaders were accused of siphoning funds from ministry budgets, passing out patronage jobs, accepting favors and gifts from suppliers and contractors.
[NOTE: THAT WAS THE LAST ELECTION ALLOWED IN GAZA.]
AN ARAFAT AIDE TELLS ALL!
The source for specific allegations against Abbas was one of Arafat’s most trusted aides, Mohammed Rashid, accused by the PA of embezzling hundreds of millions of dollars, who threatened to expose corruption scandals in the Palestinian Authority. For many years, Rashid served as Arafat’s financial advisor and was given a free hand to handle hundreds of millions of dollars that were poured on the Palestinian Authority and the PLO by US, EU and Arab donors.
According to Rashid, Abbas’s net worth was $US100 million.
FROM THE U.S. CONGRESSIONAL RECORD:
July 10, 2012, Abbas and his sons were attacked in the US Congress for their alleged corruption. The debate was entitled 'Chronic Kleptocracy: Corruption Within the Palestinian Political Establishment'.
In his testimony before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Middle East and South Asia, Elliott Abrams stated that
“Corruption is an insidious destroyer not only of Palestinian public finance but of faith in the entire political system. And it has certainly had an impact on potential donors. I can tell you from my own experience, as an American official seeking financial assistance for the PA from Gulf Arab governments, that I was often told “why should we give them money when their officials will just steal it?”
REUTERS REPORT
The conspicuous wealth of Abbas’s own sons, Yasser and Tarek, has been noted in Palestinian society since at least 2009, when Reuters first published a series of articles tying the sons to several business deals, including a few that had U.S. taxpayer support.
In a Foreign Policy article author Jonathan Schanzer suggested four ways in which the Abbas family has become rich. They include monopolies on American made cigarettes sold in the territories; US Aid funding; public works projects, such as road and school construction, on behalf of the Palestinian Authority and special preferences for retail enterprises. It was strongly implied that the sons lineage was the main credential in receiving these contracts.
It goes on ad infinitum.
SO, YEAH, POOR GAZA...BUT HAMAS IS GETTING FILTHY RICH AND ARAFAT DIED A BILLIONAIRE.
GAZA GETS AID, MILLIONS, BILLIONS, BUT THEIR OVERLORDS GRAB IT AND WILL NOT ALLOW ELECTIONS SO MAYBE, JUST MAYBE THE GAZAN PEOPLE CAN VOTE THEM OUT.
HAMAS HAS A WAY OF DEALING WITH THOSE WHO MENTION ELECTIONS TOO OFTEN OR TOO LOUDLY... THEY KILL THEM.
___________________________
FURTHER READING
~ Aug 26, 2015 - Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas is constructing a $13 million palace in the West Bank,
~ Another source of wealth for Hamas leaders was taking over land.
"They took over land mainly near the sea in good areas, such as the former Gush Katif, then sold it. In effect, they are the cat guarding the cream - the land - so they were able to take over land and loot it for themselves."
. It has recently been discovered that there are hundreds of fictitious names of soldiers and officials supposedly in Hamas. Actually, the leaders and officials put the money in their own pockets."
//WW
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