International aid charity World Vision said it is "shocked" by alleged links of its manager of operations in Gaza to the Palestinian organisation Hamas.

A statement by the charity last week confirmed the arrest of Mohammad El Halabi in June and his detention by the Israeli state for 50 days. According to the charity, El Halabi was last week charged with “providing support” to the fundamentalist political organisation.

Further media reports have claimed he is accused of funnelling approximately £5.3m a year of World Vision funds to Hamas – including some £60,000 worth of British donations.

Last week, the charity said it was committed to “regular internal and independent audits, independent evaluations and a broad range of internal controls aimed at ensuring assets reach their intended beneficiaries”.

“World Vision has detailed procedures and control mechanisms in place to ensure that the funds entrusted to us are spent in accordance with applicable legal requirements and in ways that do not fuel conflict but rather contribute to peace,” the charity said.

“We reject any involvement in any political, military or terrorist activities and maintain its independence as a humanitarian aid agency committed to serving the poor, especially children.”

World Vision has a long-running relationship with the Gaza region, having worked in Israel and Palestine for over 40 years where it supports 500,000 children through education, health and resilience programmes.

The charity confirmed it would “carefully review any evidence” and take “appropriate actions based on that evidence”, following the charges against El Halabi.

“We continue to call for a fair, legal process,” it said.

Yesterday, a report by the news agency Reuters said lawyers representing El Halabi have denied his involvement with any of the charges.

"Mohammad (El Halabi) denies all these accusations. He denied it all," Jerusalem-based lawyer Mohammad Mahmoud, who was assigned to represent El Halabi by the charity group, told Reuters by phone on Sunday.

According to Reuters, Mahmoud met his client during a court session last week, and these were his first comments made publicly.

Today a spokesman for World Vision UK said the charity is still waiting for confirmation of that statement.