Hamas announces it captured suspected killer of armed wing leader
Group says it is confident Israel is behind the assassination.
By ADAM RASGONUpdated: MAY 12, 2017 00:50The son of senior Hamas militant Mazen Fuqaha sits on the shoulders of Hamas Gaza Chief Yehya Al-Sinwar during a memorial service for Fuqaha, in Gaza City March 27, 2017 (photo credit: REUTERS)
Hamas Politburo Chairman Ismail Haniyeh on Thursday said his group’s security forces had arrested Hamas commander Mazen Fuqaha’s suspected killer.“We announce to our people and the Arab and Islamic nation that the direct, criminal killer was arrested and discovered,” Haniyeh said at a press conference in front of Fuqaha’s home in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood in Gaza City.Fuqaha, who was a senior leader in Hamas’s armed wing, was mysteriously assassinated on March 24 near his home.Hamas has accused Israel and Palestinian collaborators of killing Fuqaha and threatened to exact revenge. Israeli officials have not commented on the incident, except for Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, who suggested that Israel did not take part in it.Haniyeh, standing alongside senior Hamas officials and Nahed Assida, Fuqaha’s widow, said that the suspected killer “made clear, detailed and comprehensive confessions” to the Hamas security forces.Hamas security forces in April concluded their investigation into Fuqaha’s assassination.Haniyeh said that Hamas would hold the suspect accountable.“We are going to give this killer and everyone connected to this crime... a just sentence on the basis of revolutionary justice,” Haniyeh said.He did not name the suspect, but said the Interior Ministry in Gaza would hold a press conference in the coming days to discuss additional details.Following Haniyeh’s press conference, the Interior Ministry in Gaza released a statement that said Hamas security forces had also arrested the suspect’s accomplices.