World Vision aid worker accused of diverting $50m to Hamas

A senior employee of the international aid group World Vision in the Gaza Strip siphoned off millions of dollars of the charity’s funds and transferred them to the Islamic militant group Hamas, assisting it in building tunnels and purchasing arms, Israel’s internal security agency said.

The Shin Bet said Mohammed el-Halabi established a “systematic and sophisticated mechanism” to divert up to $50m (€45m) over the years to the group, which rules Gaza, creating fictitious humanitarian projects and doctoring inflated receipts to get the funds to Hamas.

World Vision, a US-based Christian aid group that works in nearly 100 countries, said in a statement on its website that it was “shocked” by the allegations and said it has “no reason to believe” they are true.