WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Australia has given $130 million to Hamas.
OUR VERDICT
False. Australia has given $130 million to aid organisations operating in the Middle East.
AAP FACTCHECK - The Australian government has not handed $130 million to Hamas, despite claims online.
That figure refers to money for humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza and Lebanon given by the Australian government since October 7, 2023, when an armed incursion into Israel by Hamas sparked a military response by Israel and an ongoing war.
The government and experts say the money goes to major aid organisations, not Hamas, and that there are stringent measures to ensure it doesn't indirectly fall into the wrong hands.
Numerous claims appeared on social media following the government's announcement on August 4 of the latest round ($20m) of support for aid organisations in the region.
"This is astonishing. Blight on the nation. A sad and sorry day for Australia," says an X post, which has been shared on Facebook.
"Late on Sunday night, Penny Wong has committed $20 million dollars to Hamas controlled Gaza.
"So far, Wong and Albanese has handed $130 million dollars to Hamas. Hamas use this money to fund terror.
"This is our money, taxpayers' money, being syphoned off to a listed terror group. You simply cannot believe it."
While $130m has been distributed in aid for civilians in Gaza and Lebanon, experts and the government told AAP FactCheck the money has not gone to Hamas.
The government lists where all the money has been sent in an overview on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website (DFAT).
There is a more detailed breakdown in various media releases and announcements listed on the same webpage.
For example, the latest $20 million was split between the UN World Food Programme ($6m), UNICEF ($5m), International Committee of the Red Cross ($5m), the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization ($2m) and a further $2m for relief support with the UK through an existing partnership arrangement.
Dr Anas Iqtait, a Middle East economics and politics expert at the Australian National University, said the claim is false and told AAP FactCheck the government has a clear and strict mechanism for distributing funding.
He explained that the government works with large aid agencies, both developmental and humanitarian, such as various UN bodies.
Once selected, the government issues funds to a very specific project or stream of funding within the organisation.
This enables that particular stream to be audited regularly by independent experts, with subsequent reports shared with the Australian government, Dr Iqtait said.
He added that this often extends to programs maintaining a list of beneficiaries, meaning organisations on the ground or individuals who received the aid.
"It has no basis in reality," he said of the claim.
"This is something that anyone on the ground, or who works in the industry, would not take seriously at all."
DFAT told AAP FactCheck the cited $130 million was directed to conflict-affected people in Gaza and Lebanon and was not sent to Hamas.
"The Australian Government takes its counter-terrorism, anti-fraud and anti-corruption obligations very seriously and is committed to ensuring that Australian funds are not inappropriately diverted or used (directly or indirectly) to support terrorism," a DFAT spokesperson told AAP FactCheck.
"Australia works with its aid partners to ensure due diligence is met and stringent controls and safeguards are in place, consistent with Australian law."
AAP FactCheck debunked a similar claim in 2023, with Marc Purcell, former chief executive of the Australian Council for International Development, describing aid distribution as "some of the most heavily scrutinised and managed areas of public expenditure in Australia."
"It goes through rigorous counter-terrorism financing and money laundering financing checks and requirements, both at an official level and at a non-government organisation level," he said.
Australia did briefly suspend funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which is responsible for providing support to Palestinian refugees, after allegations were made that some of its staff members were involved in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The UNRWA fired nine staff who it said may have been involved.
The Australian government announced it had resumed support on March 15, 2024, after it said steps had been taken to "strengthen the integrity of UNRWA operations".
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