RAMALLAH (West Bank), Aug 20: The Israeli army on Sunday detained the Hamas secretary of the Palestinian parliament, Mahmud Al-Ramhi, according to an AFP correspondent on the scene.

Ramhi, the fourth-ranking official in the Palestinian legislature, was detained at his home in El-Bireh, a town near Ramallah.

Around 10 Israeli army jeeps surrounded his house, quickly nabbed Ramhi from inside and left within minutes.

An Israeli army spokesman confirmed that Ramhi was arrested.

Ramhi is the latest in a string of top Hamas officials, including ministers, detained by Israel following the June 25 cross-border raid in the Gaza Strip in which Palestinians killed two soldiers and seized a third.

The ruling Hamas’s armed wing was among the three groups to have claimed responsibility for the raid.

Ramhi’s detention comes a day after Israeli troops nabbed deputy Palestinian prime minister and senior Hamas member Nassereddin Al-Shaer.

Overall, Israel has detained more than five dozen Hamas officials since June 25.—AFP