By Izzat Ramini
Albawaba.com - Ramallah
A top Hamas official in the West Bank has condemned arson attacks on tourist sites in Gaza city during a massive rally in the city Friday.
“We regret and condemn such acts which have been committed by people who have no link whatsoever with the movement,” said Hassan Youssef, Hamas’s representative in the West Bank.
Youssef said that his group had urged the people to join a rally in Gaza to show their “anger at the Israeli aggression executed by Barak’s warplanes on Palestinian sites.”
During the rally, some individuals set fire to tourist sites including hotels, restaurants and bars.
“Such acts are not on the agenda of the Hamas movement’s daily struggle [against the Israeli occupation].”
Youssef criticized statements by a Fateh official to the press blaming the group for the attacks.
“The statement by secretary of Fateh movement in Gaza accusing the Hamas of conducting the attacks was mere lies, which we consider a stab in the back of the Palestinian struggle,” he said, adding that the issue will be discussed during a meeting late Friday that will involve political powers, including Fateh, the PLO mainstream faction.
“I want to emphasize here that the movement can independently carry out its activities, but we prefer unified efforts because that is the wish of our people,” he said.
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