The Palestinian Authority has arrested several Hamas members for organizing and carrying out two recent attacks on Israeli settlers, a senior official said late Tuesday, as Israel said that the West Bank will be sealed off during Jewish New Year celebrations.
The Palestinian security official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said that two groups had been arrested but did not specify exactly how many members of the Islamist movement were under arrest.
The first attack on Aug. 31 claimed the lives of four settlers and the second on Sept. 1 wounded two people east of Ramallah, the official said.
"Senseless slaughter"
The message should go out to Hamas and everybody else who is taking credit for these heinous crimes that this is not going to stop us from not only ensuring a secure Israel, but also securing a longer-lasting peace in which people throughout the region can take a different course
Hamas had claimed responsibility for gunning down four Israelis on the West Bank and the Sept. 1 attack came the day before the first direct Israeli-Palestinian talks for 20 months began in Washington.
Hamas later claimed to have made between 150 and 550 arrests over the killings but the Palestinian Authority said this was an exaggerated figure.
U.S. President Barack Obama has branded the attack on two couples, including a pregnant woman, as "senseless slaughter," and warned about "extremists and rejectionists who, rather than seeking peace, are going to be seeking destruction."
"The message should go out to Hamas and everybody else who is taking credit for these heinous crimes that this is not going to stop us from not only ensuring a secure Israel, but also securing a longer-lasting peace in which people throughout the region can take a different course," he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu branded the killings "savagery and brutality."
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said the September attack in Kiryat Arba, a West Bank settlement, was intended to "disrupt the political process."
Hamas, which rules Gaza, is opposed to the peace talks and is a rival of Abbas's U.S.-backed Palestinian Authority.
Jewish New Year
The Israeli Defense Forces, meanwhile, said in a statement that the army will seal off the West Bank starting Tuesday as a security precaution during Jewish New Year celebrations.
The closure will last until Saturday and anyone needing medical assistance will be allowed to travel from the West Bank into Israel as long as they have the required permits, the statement said.
Journalists and representatives of non-governmental organizations wishing to travel will need to make separate arrangements with the army and the same goes for the transit of humanitarian aid.
Israel regularly closes the main transit points with the West Bank during major holidays.
Jewish New Year celebrations begin on Wednesday evening.
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