Israel allegedly confiscated six military grade drones that were being smuggled in through the Jordanian border alongside relief donations earlier this week, i24 News exclusively reported.
Matthais Inbar, i24 News’s military correspondent, learned about this exclusive story from his sources within Israeli security forces, according to the outlet. (RELATED: UN Official Martin Griffiths Says ‘Hamas Is Not A Terrorist Group.’ Israel Responds)
The donations in which the drones were found were from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the sources alleged, i24 News reported.
Col. (res.) Grisha Yakubovich reacted to this development during an interview with i24 by recalling his own experience with UNRWA during Israel’s military operation in Gaza back in 2014 and placing that experience in light of these allegations.
i24NEWS learns drones smuggled in from Jordan among UNRWA donations
“I’m asking myself how many trucks I helped UNRWA to bring into Gaza, and to smuggle drones and weapons and I-don’t-know what,” former COGAT Col. (res.) @GrishaConsult tells @guyaz pic.twitter.com/aH8TjqXSAa
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) February 15, 2024
“One of the missions that I led for almost 50 days with UNRWA … And the operation was two airplanes, every day, C-35s, from Oman to Amman, and from there trucks full with aid that we actually escorted and coordinated the entrance to the Gaza Strip. I’m asking myself [in light of this news] how many trucks I helped UNRWA to bring into Gaza, and to smuggle, I don’t know, weapons and drones and and I-don’t-know what,” Col. Yaubovich told i24 News.
“UNRWA has proven that we cannot rely on them, and there is only one solution with them … UNRWA will not continue working or providing aid or whatever in the Gaza Strip. I think that the same thing should happen also in other places around the Middle East,” he added.
UNRWA has been the center of controversy in recent weeks over accusations that Palestinian terrorist organizations have heavily infiltrated the agency. Over 1,000 of the agency’s staff in Gaza —about 10 percent of the agency’s staff in the area — are alleged to be linked with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, The Wall Street Journal reported. Some countries have suspended funding of the agency following allegations that UNRWA staff participated in the Oct. 7 massacre and raid on Israel, according to official press releases and NBC News. UNRWA’s own Gaza headquarters was above an important Hamas tunnel network that was used for data collection and logistics, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, the Times of Israel reported.
The Knesset — Israel’s parliament — reacted to these events by clearing a bill in its preliminary reading Wednesday that would ban UNRWA from operating on Israeli soil, The Times of Israel reported.