Israeli army arrests Hamas members in West Bank, more arrests underway

Source : Xinhua

RAMALLAH/JERUSALEM, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli army arrested on Monday 21 Hamas members in the West Bank, including three lawmakers, during pre-dawn raids, well-informed Palestinian sources said, while the Israeli military said more arrests are underway.

Most of the arrests were taken place in Nablus city, targeting nine senior members of the Islamic movement, said Hurriyat Center for Prisoners Rights in a statement.

Meanwhile, a Israeli military spokeswoman said that 25 Palestinians wanted for questioning by security forces were arrested, the majority of them are Hamas sympathizers.

Two lawmakers of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) were seized in their homes in Hebron city and the third was arrested in the central city of Ramallah.

The Israeli forces also stormed two Hamas-run charities in Tulkarem and Hebron and confiscated computers and documents.

The West Bank is ruled by the Palestinian National Authority ( PNA), Hamas' rival, under President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party.

Also, The Jerusalem Post quoted a senior Israeli officer in the army's Central Command as saying that other "senior terrorism activists" will be arrested in the near future due to their involvement in a recent spike in public disorder and violent incidents in the West Bank.

Palestinian security forces in the West Bank also arrested a number of Hamas operatives in recent days, The Jerusalem Post reported, noting that some had recently been released from Israeli prisons.

The Israeli raids in the West Bank take place on a daily basis. Hamas, which routed pro-Abbas forces and took over the Gaza Strip in 2007, accuses the PNA of conducting security liaison with Israel to undermine Hamas in the West Bank.

For his part, Hamas' Ministry of Prisoners' Affairs in Gaza condemned the detentions, saying the move is aimed at sabotaging ongoing efforts to achieve an internal Palestinian reconciliation.