Israel’s Be'er Sheva District Court on Tuesday sentenced an Israeli merchant, Michael Peretz, to seven years in jail for heading a smuggling ring that transferred illegal goods to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.
Peretz was also fined $66,000 for smuggling thousands of tons of concrete, piping, metals and chemicals used in making rockets directly to Hamas.
The verdict was issued according to political and security charges such as "contacting a foreign agent," "conspiring to commit a crime," and "transferring materials to assist a terrorist organization (Hamas) to carry out attacks against Israel."
According to the prosecution, Peretz knew that one of the Gaza traders to whom he was transferring the goods was supplying them to Hamas, and had even been warned about it.
Of the merchandise allegedly supplied by the men to Hamas, prosecutors said that the pipes were to be used in the production of rockets, while the concrete enabled the group to rebuild attack tunnels into Israel.
Judges said that Peretz knew that the materials he transferred to Gaza were destined for Hamas but continued with the deals because of the high profits he was raking in.
According to allegations released by the Shin Bet security agency after his arrest in 2015, Peretz, along with two other Israelis, set up a front company to cloak the transfer of illegal materials to a Hamas middleman at the Kerem Shalom crossing.
The trial judges maintained that Peretz was fully aware that the materials whose transfer he facilitated were destined for Hamas, but continued to operate due to the high returns he was taking.
Peretz was found guilty thanks to the recording of phone conversations between him and two other people involved in the case.
“Even for a million dollars, I would not be willing to harm the security of the state,” Peretz had told interrogators, but failed to convince the judges.
