Since late March, Palestinian Authority (PA) spokesmen and official news outlets have been claiming that Jerusalem has deliberately spread COVID-19 in the West Bank, and that it has interfered with Palestinian efforts to contain the spread of the virus and treat those infected. Officials in the Gaza Strip have made similar assertions. These claims are patently false. But, though Israel is not at fault, Sander Gerber writes, both the Hamas regime and, to a lesser extent, the PA, are woefully unprepared to deal with the burgeoning health crisis:

The Palestinians have received more development and humanitarian assistance over the last 30 years than any other group of people in history. Yet they completely lack the organization and infrastructure needed to combat this pandemic. The PA in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza have both squandered billions of dollars of aid that was meant to build a public-health system, spending the money instead on corruption, incitement, and terrorism.

[Gaza’s] critical shortages [of medical supplies] are not the result of any action or inaction taken by Israel. Medical supplies pass through Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt every day. The West Bank has virtually no restrictions on medical imports from Israel or Jordan. The real story is a shortage of leadership. In the West Bank, the PA steals foreign-aid money for its own enrichment and is widely considered among the most corrupt governing entities in the world. In Gaza, Hamas uses it to build rockets and terror tunnels. The result is the same. Both groups fund hatred of Israel and steal the people’s money, rather than make investments in healthcare and welfare. The Palestinian people pay the price.

As the world economy braces for tough times ahead, the PA already announced it will prioritize payments to terrorists ahead of salaries for teachers and public servants. They spend $350 million per year on a “pay-for-slay” program, which provides generous monthly stipends to terrorists who murder Jews. . . . In Gaza, Hamas spends at least $100 million per year on terrorist activities.

Israel’s goals of freeing the hostages and defeating Hamas (the latter necessary to prevent further hostage taking) are to some extent contradictory, since Yahya Sinwar, the ruler of the Gaza Strip, will only turn over hostages in exchange for concessions. But Jacob Nagel remains convinced that Jerusalem should continue to pursue both goals:

Only consistent military pressure on Hamas can lead to the hostages’ release, either through negotiation or military operation. There’s little chance of reaching a deal with Hamas using current approaches, including the latest Egyptian proposal. Israeli concessions would only encourage further pressure from Hamas.

There is no incentive for Hamas to agree to a deal, especially since it believes it can achieve its full objectives without one. Unfortunately, many contribute to this belief, mainly from outside of Israel, but also from within.

Recent months saw Israel mistakenly refraining from entering Rafah for several reasons. Initially, the main [reason was to try] to negotiate a deal with Hamas. However, as it became clear that Hamas was uninterested, and its only goal was to return to its situation before October 7—where Hamas and its leadership control Gaza, Israeli forces are out, and there are no changes in the borders—the deal didn’t mature.