Hamas arrests suspected militant leader in Gaza

GAZA CITY/JERUSALEM: Hamas police detained a suspected militant leader in Gaza on Saturday, a security source said, the latest in a series of arrests of those accused of supporting Daesh’s ideology.

“This morning, security forces arrested Nour Issa, 27, who is a leader of the deviant thought movement and is from Bureij Camp in central Gaza, along with others,” the source said, using a phrase Hamas officials routinely use to refer to militants, including Daesh.

The internal security service confirmed on its Facebook page that it had made a number of arrests.

“One of the leaders of the deviant thought has been arrested along with others,” it said, without giving a name.

The Hamas movement has run Gaza for a decade but it has been challenged by small hard-line factions, some of them inspired by Daesh.

Some have carried out sporadic rocket attacks into Israel in defiance of an informal truce agreed by Hamas.

In August, a suicide bomber allegedly linked to Daesh killed a Hamas guard in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt.

Hamas has arrested a number of extremists and Daesh-linked figures.

Israel eases holiday

restrictions

Israel on Friday decided to ease restrictions on Palestinians entering during the Jewish Sukkot holiday, which began Wednesday, the Israeli army said.

On Tuesday, the army said crossings from the West Bank and Gaza into Israel would be closed to Palestinians for 11 days until midnight on Oct. 14. But on Friday they decided those with pre-existing work permits would be allowed in “according to the needs of the market,” an army spokeswoman told AFP. The decision applies to Palestinians working in agriculture and hospitals, according to media reports.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians work inside Israel, where they can find higher salaries.

Israel, which controls access to the Palestinian territories, regularly closes them off during Jewish holidays, citing security fears. But the closure announced Tuesday was unusual in its length.

Israeli media saw it as a reaction to a Sept. 26 attack at the entrance of a West Bank settlement in which three people were killed.

The Palestinian attacker, who was shot dead, had a permit to work inside the settlement and the incident raised fear of attacks during the holiday period.

Sukkot, which continues until Oct. 12, commemorates the Jewish journey through the Sinai after their exodus from Egypt. This year, it is followed by a weekend.