The Ramallah authority security services launched a campaign of mass arrests against Hamas supporters and cadres, in West Bank towns, arresting so far 60 leaders, reformers, ex-captives, youth activists and universities’ students.
Elements of the intelligence and preventive apparatuses raided the cities of Nablus, Tulkarem, Qalqilya, Salfit and al-Khalil, and started breaking into the houses of Hamas supporters and arresting dozens of them.
For their part, a number of detainees announced starting a hunger strike, immediately after their arrest, as the liberated captive Taleb Abu Sneineh from al-Khalil, Sheikh Hussam Harb from Iskaka and the human rights activist and writer Fouad Khuffash from Marda near Salfit.
Observers believe that these procedures are the result of the political failure of PA, and that they came after the elected Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials, in a time when the Authority in the West Bank is experiencing huge political and economic crisis and facing large protests from residents.
This campaign is a new attempt by PA to distract domestic public opinion and human rights organizations, through arrests carried out against Hamas supporters, from holding protests against the authority and the Oslo agreement signed with the Zionist entity.
