I would love for someone to do a story on where all the money goes that is sent to aid the Palestinians. I know Arafat (piss be upon him) stole a huge chunk of it and his widow is living large (if she’s still alive). We need to shine a light on the personal finances of the leaders of ham-ass.
Here is an article on Hamas’ corruption:
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4543634,00.html
The leader, Khaled Mashal (like Arafat was) is a billionaire. High level Hamas folks have million dollar villas and several lucrative rackets - fuel surcharges, 20% tax on all goods smuggled through their tunnels, etc. Also, when the Muslim Brotherhood took power in Egypt lots of Hamas guys got multi-million dollar windfalls.
Gazans on average have higher incomes and standard of living than the average Egyptian, but they are the world’s largest and longest running recipients of refugee funding from the international community. Some “refugees” are the third generation receiving handouts, while living continuously in their family owned homes. Palestinians in general tend to be more urban and educated. So yes, Hamas steals, but a large swath of the population is in on the big aid scam.
Nonetheless, the corruption of Arafat and his PLO/Fatah/PA were a big factor in Hamas winning the election in Gaza in 2006 - Hamas was the only alternative, and presented themselves as devout clean-living types. Well by now the bloom should be off the rose, and uncovering Hamas corruption is a key to undermining their political appeal among the Palestinian public.