Hamas leader announces arrest in shooting of commander

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Hamas’ newly elected supreme leader on Thursday announced the arrest of the man believed responsible for the mysterious shooting death of one of his organization’s top military commanders in March, a breakthrough in a case that has embarrassed and shocked the Islamic militant group.

Hamas hopes the arrest will shore up its standing with the public at a time when it has been weakened by the shooting, an economic crisis and rising tensions with the rival Palestinian Authority. Accusing Israel of orchestrating the assassination, Hamas declared victory and scheduled celebratory rallies across Gaza.

Ismail Haniyeh, who was named the head of Hamas’ political bureau last week, announced the arrest at a hastily scheduled news conference. He declined to identify the suspect but implied he was a Palestinian who had collaborated with Israel.

“All the evidence we have indicates that the perpetrator committed this crime based on orders from the Israeli occupation,” Haniyeh said. More details will be released in the coming days, he added, noting that the suspect would face execution.

The death of Mazen Faqha, a shadowy senior figure in Hamas’ military wing, has shocked the militant group that has ruled Gaza with an iron fist for the past decade.

Faqha, 38, was killed in the garage of his apartment building on March 24, shortly after he had dropped off his family. Hamas said the killer used a weapon with a silencer, allowing him to escape undetected before Faqha’s body was discovered an hour later.

At the time, the group quickly blamed Israel and imposed a lockdown on Gaza. It set up military-style checkpoints throughout the small, seaside territory, sealed Gaza’s border with Israel and rounded up hundreds of people for questioning.

Israel has not responded to Hamas’ accusations that it was behind the killing. Officials did not immediately return messages seeking comment Thursday.

“What the enemy did was a painful strike in terms of strategy and security,” Haniyeh said.

He thanked the public for showing its “understanding” of the security measures and praised his intelligence services for cracking the case.