Report: PA claim capture of Hamas arms cache

Security forces spokesman says arms were to be used to attack senior officials or to sabotage PA policies in W. Bank; Hamas issues denial.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
311_Ak47s from hebron Hamas (photo credit: Courtesy of IDF Spokeperson's Unit)
311_Ak47s from hebron Hamas
(photo credit: Courtesy of IDF Spokeperson's Unit)
Palestinian Authority security forces in the past month confiscated a large Hamas arms cache hidden in the West Bank city of Ramallah, London-based daily al-Quds al-Arabi reported Friday morning.
PA security forces spokesman Adnan Damiri confirmed to the paper that the confiscated weapons belonged to Hamas and that further details would be released after a thorough investigation was completed. The PA official, however, alleged that the weapons cache was to be used by terrorists seeking to target senior PA officials and or sabotage PA security enforcement in the West Bank.  "The goal of the arms [cache] was to target senior Authority officials or the policy obligations of the Authority," said Damiri.
RELATED:Robinson tells ‘Post’ of encouraging a non-violent HamasOpinion: Quietly taking over"Among other things, security forces  confiscated mortar shells, rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons," Damiri elaborated. "Hamas weapons-dealing and money laundering are the most dangerous issues facing the Palestinian Authority." Damiri added that the weapons warehouse was found in a residential area of Ramallah.
A senior Hamas official denied PA claims in an interview with Palestinian website Filastin al-An. "Hamas has never once considered targeting senior Authority officials in the West Bank. Any weapon found in the hands of the opposition would be used only to fight against the occupation."
This week the Defense Ministry rejected a UN request to establish a number of new schools in the Gaza Strip, because, it says, they were supposed to be built on land provided by Hamas and next to a Hamas military installation.
The United Nations Relief and Work Agency asked for permission to build several schools in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood in southern Gaza City, according to details obtained by The Jerusalem Post.