Hamas launched on Wednesday a campaign of arrests against extremists influenced by ISIS, a day after three policemen from the movement were killed in two coordinated bombings.
Hamas also declared a state of alert while the Interior Ministry issued a statement pledging that the “wicked hands that perpetrated this crime will not evade punishment.”
Tuesday’s explosions are the deadliest attacks launched by ISIS and other extremist organizations on Hamas police checkpoints in the enclave.
A Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday that the blasts killed Salameh al-Nadim, 32, Wael Khalifa, 45, and Alaa al-Gharbali, 32, all traffic policemen.
Interior Ministry spokesman Iyad al-Bozm said police and security forces were mobilized in the aftermath of the two explosions.
He said the two bombers who blew themselves up had been identified.
A few hours after the blasts, Hamas arrested several suspects.
“Our investigations are progressing and we will not stop until we reveal the full circumstances of the explosions,” Bozm said.
The Ministry spokesperson promised a strong response. “We assure you that those who are behind these explosions will not escape punishment,” he said.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said: "Gaza will overcome all the conspiracies. They will not be able to do what they cannot accomplish with war and blockades.”
As for the Interior Ministry statement, it said that the “suspicious explosions–that seek to cause confusion –are isolated events that will not impact the [stable security] situation.”
The website i24news reported that one of the suspects – a suicide bomber identified as “AGh”—was the son of a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad member and was active in the ranks of the militant group.
