Posted on 08/30/22
| News Source: i24
Halabi was convicted in June of transferring millions to Hamas, the militant group controlling the Gaza Strip
An Israeli court on Tuesday sentenced the former Gaza head of a major US-based aid agency to 12 years in prison for allegedly funneling millions of dollars to Islamist group Hamas.
The Be'er Sheva district court in southern Israel issued a sentence of "12 years prison time, less the detention" already served for World Vision's Mohammed al-Halabi, who has been jailed throughout the past six years of court proceedings.
Halabi was convicted in June of transferring millions to Hamas, the militant group controlling the Gaza Strip. He has been held under arrest since his detainment in 2016, two years after he was appointed manager of World Vision's Gaza operations. Over 160 hearings have been held since then.
In a 254-page classified ruling, the District Court noted Halabi's confession to Israel's internal security, which he has since withdrawn.
“The defendant’s confession, given in various ways, is detailed, coherent, with signs of truthfulness,” Justice Natan Zlotchover wrote in the decision