Israel’s Shin Bet security agency announced Thursday that it had broken up a Hamas money laundering ring.
The ring, which was established early last year, was an attempt to evade Israeli sanctions barring the terrorist group from moving money freely, The Times of Israel reported.
Under the scheme, two members of the ring, Hebron residents Muasseb Hashalmon and Taha Uthman, would travel to Turkey and receive funds from Hamas. They would buy and sell merchandise with the money they received, then take a percentage of the proceeds and transfer the rest to members of Hamas in the West Bank. According to the Shin Bet, the ring managed to transfer 720,000 shekels ($200,000) to Hamas leadership.
Both men were recruited by Muhammad Maher Bader, a senior member of Hamas in Hebron and member of the Palestinian parliament, who was identified by the Shin Bet as the ringleader of the scheme.
“The discovery of this operation shows the never-ending desire by Hamas operatives in Turkey and Gaza to increase terrorism by Hamas in the West Bank,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.
The agency also observed that many otherwise legitimate businesses in Hebron would suffer a “significant personal and financial price” for participating in the scheme.
Looks like Haroun Nasser al-Din, a product of the Gilad Shalit swap, now heads up Hamas financial ops in Turkey. pic.twitter.com/3j1vGbfQZb
— Jonathan Schanzer (@JSchanzer) August 3, 2017
Haron Nasser al-Din was the Hamas official in Turkey who gave Hashalmon and Uthman tens of thousands of dollars for the scheme. Meanwhile, Umar Qimri and Yusri Hashalmon, two other Hebron residents, worked with Gaza-based Hamas official Majd Jaaba to arrange the deals through Turkey.
Jaaba and Al-Din, were among the prisoners released in 2011 in exchange for the freedom of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped by Hamas in 2006.
The Shin Bet also announced that it had broken up a second plot in which Hamas laundered money through a cement factory in Hebron.
[Photo: Shin Bet ]