Israeli forces arrest Hamas-affiliated legislator in southern West Bank

Israeli forces have arrested a legislator with affiliation to the Gaza-based Islamic resistance movement, Hamas, along with more than a dozen other Palestinians during separate overnight operations across the occupied West Bank.

News ID: 446154

Date: 27 July 2019 - 08:11

RNA - The Palestine Prisoner’s Society (PPS) said in a press statement that Israeli troops stormed the city of al-Khalil, situated 30 kilometers south of Jerusalem al-Quds, early on Thursday and broke into the house of the Palestinian Legislative Council member, Azzam Nuaman Salhab, before detaining him.

Israeli forces have detained Salhab on multiple occasions. The Palestinian lawmaker was last released from Israeli detention on December 26, 2017.

He has been held each time under Israel's policy of administrative detention, which is a sort of imprisonment without trial or charge that allows Israel to incarcerate Palestinians for up to six months. The jail term is extendable to an infinite number of times.

Some prisoners have been held in administrative detention for up to 11 years without any charges brought against them.

Palestinian detainees have continuously resorted to open-ended hunger strikes to express their outrage at the detentions.

Also early on Thursday, Israeli forces broke into several homes in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, making six arrests. Four former prisoners were among those arrested.

Elsewhere in Nablus, located approximately 49 kilometers north of Jerusalem al-Quds, three Palestinians were arrested when Israeli forces raided a number of houses and ransacked them. A Palestinian was also detained in Qalqilyah city.

In Jerusalem al-Quds, Israeli forces rounded up seven Palestinians, including a father along with his two sons.

Israeli military forces also conducted a raid in Surif city, detaining a Palestinian.

Some 7,000 Palestinians are currently behind bars in 17 Israeli prisons and detention centers, according to reports.

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