Realistically speaking, it will be impossible to prevent Hamas from scooping up supplies and money sent to the Gaza Strip, an Israeli official involved in talks between Israel, Egypt, the United Nations, and the US on planned efforts to rehabilitate Gaza after Operation Guardian of the Walls.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
According to the official, without Israeli presence on the ground, international oversight and supervision measures would be limited.
"Hamas will take its portion," the official added. He said that steps Israel could take to slow the rate at which Hamas would rearm itself included stepping up oversight of dual-use items sent into Gaza, as well as demanding that Egypt tighten its own supervision of the Rafah border crossing.
However, he said, the cycle of a military operation against Hamas infrastructure leading to destruction leading to rebuilding efforts that allow Hamas to rehabilitate itself could not be prevented.
Since the end of the operation, Israel and Egypt have been trying to find a way to help rebuild Gaza, but not Hamas, a principle stated by US President Joe Biden.
Meanwhile, head of Egypt's General Intelligence Directorate Abbas Kamel arrived in Gaza from Israel on Monday and held meetings with senior representatives of Hamas and other Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip. Deputy leader of Hamas in Gaza Khalil al-Hayya said, "Prior to the round of fighting, we had made progress on a prisoner exchange deal. The fighting stopped all the negotiations, and if the Zionist enemy wants to, it is possible to reach a deal quickly."
Al-Hayya emphasized that Hamas rejected any option for a long-term agreement to reconstruct Gaza that would include a return of Israel's captive fallen soldiers and civilians.
In related news, an Israeli security delegation is scheduled to arrive in Sharm e-Sheikh in the Sinai Peninsula on June 22 to promote direct flights between Israel and the tourist town.
Kamel has already met with Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen, and the two agreed to host bilateral business delegations in Israel and Egypt. Cohen led a delegation to Sharm e-Sheikh in March of this year.
Cohen and Kamel agreed that the security delegation would depart for Sharm e-Sheikh to look into security infrastructure there. The discussions about direct flights come as Israel's National Security Council and Shin Bet security agency are considering lowering Israel's travel warning for Sinai for the first time in 15 years from its current level of 1 (the highest) to 2 or 3.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
