Gaza aid shipments resume as Hamas backs down from extortion threats targeting private merchants
Merchants previously suspended truck coordination activities in protest of a tax threatened by Hamas, wherein the terror organization demanded payments of approximately NIS 10,000 per truck
Assessment
Hamas has backed down from its demand for a NIS 10,000 per truck tax on private merchants, allowing Gaza aid shipments to resume. The extortion attempt had prompted merchants to suspend coordination, creating a bottleneck that threatened to worsen the humanitarian situation. This episode reveals Hamas's ongoing effort to control aid distribution and extract revenue from the flow of goods into Gaza. The question now is whether the group will attempt similar tactics again once the immediate pressure subsides.