Israel and the British natural gas company BG Group Plc will move ahead with controversial plans to drill for natural gas in the Gaza Marine field, despite Hamas’s takeover of the Gaza Strip last month, The Jerusalem Post reported on July 6. Reportedly, the two sides have reached an agreement to transfer funds intended for the Palestinian Authority’s Palestinian Investment Fund into an international bank account, and exclude the Hamas terror party from receiving any revenues from the gas sales. According to the plan, BG will drill for natural gas 36 kilometers off of the Gaza coast in an area that was designated as PA territory following the Oslo Accord, and contains an estimated $4 billion dollars worth of natural gas. Israel is set to become the sole consumer of the resources.