Israeli Army reportedly arrests Palestinian official

Israeli Army reportedly arrests Palestinian official

2010-10-19 03:49:16 GMT+7 (ICT)

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL (BNO NEWS) -- Israeli soldiers in the southern West Bank on Monday arrested Hatem Qafaish, a Hamas member of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), local media reported.

On Monday morning, soldiers of the Israeli Army raided Qafaish's home in Hebron, located in the southern region of the West Bank. The reason of his arrest is currently unknown, but according to reports, he was detained for "security questioning."

Qafaish, who was elected to the PLC in January 2006 after a successful campaign from his prison cell, has been involved in political conflicts on a number of occasions.

Among his previous arrests, Qafaish was detained along with several other Hamas officials in 2006 when a soldier of the Israeli Army, Gilad Shalit, was captured by resistance fighters in Gaza.

Over 10 members of the Palestinian National Council remain in jail, including two from the Fatah party and one from the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

A German mediator has been in talks with both sides for some time in an effort to secure the release of Shalit.

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