Our aid and money go directly to people, we apply very strict mechanisms: Foreign Minister

(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Saint Petersburg: The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani stressed that Qatar’s aid and money go directly to the people and applies very strict mechanisms that everyone knows, including the Israelis and the United States. This came during his participation in a session entitled "West Asia and North Africa.. Paths Towards Stability and Prosperity," which was organized by the Doha Forum during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2021. Regarding the controversy surrounding Qatar during the past years due to the blockade and the accusations of its support for Hamas and extremist elements in Gaza and the financing of terrorist elements, HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said, "Unfortunately, this is part of the misinformation campaign that Qatar is exposed to. Our aid and money go directly to the people. We apply very strict mechanisms that everyone knows, including the Israelis and the United States. We also abide by all international rules and the US sanctions system because we are tied to the dollar in the end. Our banking system works transparently and in accordance with good governance practices. Our relationship with Hamas and the Taliban movements does not mean that we finance or support them." The Foreign Minister added that Qatar aims with this relationship to establish contact and open a channel with them, adding that in Gaza now there is, unfortunately, a lot of misinformation spread by the Israelis, while they know very well how strict Qatar controls this process and where the money it contributes goes. Since 2012, Qatar has contributed $1.4 billion to the reconstruction of Gaza, and has built 42,000 housing units, roads, hospitals, and schools, and is contributing to the care and maintenance of those facilities, he pointed out. On whether any of this money found its way into the pockets of the Palestinians, HE the Foreign Minister said, "Of course, it is a very tight process by which all the materials are managed and all the contracts are prepared through our reconstruction committee. Our employees are there on the ground and they are working by themselves now. In the last three years, if we take that period as an example, Gaza has been getting electricity for only two hours a day at first, and when Qatar intervened, it increased that period to 16 hours." His Excellency also asked, "Where do we get fuel from", explaining "It is obtained from the Israeli side and sent to the Electricity Company of the Palestinian Authority, which generates electricity for the people of Gaza, and this support represents 50 percent of the money that Qatar donates monthly to Gaza, and the remaining 50 percent goes to 230,000 poor families in Gaza, each of whom receives $100." The Foreign Minister said, "I have here a big question about it: Will this USD100 finance Hamas, or will it build its weapons system or anything the Israelis claim" explaining that "Another part of the money goes to financing the work of the United Nations Development Program, and we are working in full coherence with the United Nations, we have a well-defined coordination mechanism with our international partners." He added, "For three years we have been inviting all international partners to participate, and there was no one except Qatar and a few countries. Gaza needs a lot, especially since, as you know, for 14 years it has been an open prison for 2.1 million people who are under siege and cannot move."MENAFN05062021000063011010ID1102215925