Hamas denounces the Palestinian Authority’s security forces for targeting resistance fighters.

In a statement released on Thursday, Hamas urged solidarity in the face of conflict and in the defense of their people.

“The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) has denounced the current wave of arrests by the Palestinian Authority Security Forces, particularly focused in the Nablus governorate and aimed at resistance fighters, activists, and recently released prisoners,” it stated.

Hamas also condemned the efforts to tarnish their reputation through the dissemination of rumors and false accusations.

“While the aggression of the brutal occupation intensifies in the West Bank governorates, the PA Security Forces remain steadfast in their assaults on our internal stability and the Palestinian social fabric by continuing political arrests and persecution. They completely ignore all pleas to end these degrading detentions, which disrespect the sacrifices of our revolutionary people and align fully with the occupation’s increasing hostility,” stated the resistance movement.

“We urge the PA to halt these actions at once, to prevent its Security Forces from targeting our resistance fighters, to free all political prisoners, and to focus these Forces on uniting in the genuine battle to protect our people and territory,” the statement continued.

Hamas and other Palestinian factions in the blockaded Gaza Strip have collectively urged for a mobilization to defend the occupied West Bank amid Israel’s most significant offensive on the territory in years.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Committee of National and Islamic Forces in Gaza, which includes Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, and other groups, urged all Palestinians to resist the continued lethal Israeli incursions in the occupied West Bank.

The committee urgently urged the Palestinian Authority and its associated security forces to “fulfill their responsibilities in safeguarding the Palestinian populace” and “step up to defend honor and dignity by facing the Zionist forces and their settler groups.”

The resistance groups also called on all Palestinians to “rally for a widespread resistance and direct engagement with the adversary to defend their land and identity, and to support our people in the northern West Bank.”

Since October 2023, there has been an increase in violence in the West Bank with Israeli forces and settlers causing the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians.

After close to 11 months of fighting, the Tel Aviv administration has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,600 Palestinian civilians, predominantly women and children. Vast areas of Gaza lie in ruins, further exacerbated by a strict blockade that limits access to food, clean water, and medical supplies.