(NewsNation) — The United Nations warned it is on the verge of running out of fuel in Gaza, which would force it to halt humanitarian aid, but Israel claims Hamas is hoarding thousands of liters in the Gaza Strip.
"We know that Hamas has stockpiled fuel, hundreds of thousands of liters of it, both gasoline and diesel fuel. And we know where they keep it. We have also monitored the fact that they have been stealing fuel from U.N. agencies and from private vendors. They steal fuel, and they stockpile fuel in order to run their war machine against Israel," said IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus.
Conricus joined "NewsNation Now" to discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, claiming the situation is not as bad as it seems, estimating Hamas has between 800,000 and 1 million liters of fuel stockpiled.
"I've been told two weeks ago that Gaza was running out of everything, of food, of water, fuel, of medicine, and everything else. It wasn't true then, and it is not true now," Conricus said.
According to U.N. reports, over 80% of Gazans rely on aid for survival. Ninety-five percent of Gaza's population lacks access to clean water, and a shortage of anesthesia forces doctors to perform surgeries without it.
"It's very odd, you know, statements by these humanitarian organizations. They are not helpful for the civilians. All of these statements should be pointed at Hamas, and these humanitarian organizations should have the professional accuracy to say, 'We know that there's fuel in Gaza, and we are requesting the Gaza authorities, which is Hamas, to please provide fuel,'" Conricus said.
NewsNation has not independently verified Israel's claims that Hamas has fuel nor that it is out of fuel.