Police arrest five senior Hamas officials in East Jerusalem (Al-Quds)

Source: Haaretz, 6-7-2006
Police officers arrested five senior Hamas officials in East Jerusalem (Al-Quds) early Thursday. Police said the five aided Palestinian parliament members from Jerusalem handle Hamas affairs in the city.
According to the Jerusalem Police, the arrests are part of a larger effort to thwart Hamas activities in the city.
Also Thursday, the remand of five Hamas detained officials arrested last week, among them legislator Mohammed Abu Tir, was extended by eight days.
On Wednesday, the attorney representing five Hamas lawmakers arrested by "Israel" last week said that his clients refuse to recognize the authority of the "Israeli" Military court at the Ofer military base to rule on their case.
The five, who were detained last week as part of a mass arrest of Hamas officials, had their remand extended by five days Wednesday.
Four of the five who appeared in court Wednesday are parliament members; the fifth is the Palestinian Minister for Waqf Affairs, Naif Rajoub.
Their attorney, Jawad Bulus, said his clients viewed their remand as an abduction.
"The process is a slap in the face to the many factors that gave legitimacy to fair, public and democratic elections held in the Palestinian Authority, in which they were elected by the Palestinian people," Bulus said.
Some 65 officials from Hamas` political wing were arrested in the West Bank and East Jerusalem (Al-Quds) last week. Among those detained are eight Hamas ministers and 20 parliament members, as well as the mayor of Qalqilyah.
Additional remand extensions are expected Thursday.