Since Hamas carried out its deadly terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, there has been intense scrutiny of the Palestinian militant group’s use of North Korean military technology. On October 16, Israeli Ambassador to South Korea Akiva Tor expressed concern that Hamas had used North Korean weapons against Israel and vowed to destroy North Korean weapons stocks in the Gaza Strip. The next day, a senior official from South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff claimed that “Hamas is believed to be directly or indirectly linked to North Korea in various areas, such as the weapons trade, tactical guidance and training.”
North Korea’s state Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) called allegations that it armed Hamas “a groundless and false rumor” and accused the US of fomenting this conspiracy to deflect from its own complicity in the Gaza War. Pyongyang’s insinuation that the US was behind these reports was misleading, as US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stated that he could not confirm that North Korea armed Hamas.
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