Hamas lawmaker criticizes crackdown on Gaza NGOs

GAZA, July 29 (Xinhua) -- A Hamas lawmaker on Tuesday criticized a crackdown his movement launched in Gaza against charities and civil organizations affiliated with rival Fatah movement loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas.

Yehia Moussa, head of the parliamentarian human rights committee, said the closure of the charities and non-governmental organizations "was a decision and a procedure violating the law."

Hamas security forces, backed by militants of Hamas armed wing, shut down and confiscated up to 160 civil organizations and arrested about 200 Fatah supporters and activists following a mysterious beachside blast that killed five Hamas members and a girl on Friday.

Moussa said the civil societies can only be closed down according to legal procedures, calling on the deposed Hamas government to "prevent the intervention of armed groups ... from getting into the Palestinian civil life."

Though he called on the government "to pursue and expose the criminals," Moussa did not comment on the arrest campaign which several human rights organizations said was politically motivated.

Following the explosion, Hamas immediately accused Fatah of being involved in the explosion, though the latter officially denied any role.

According to a Hamas statement Tuesday, the security forces of Abbas continued the crackdown on Hamas movement all over the West Bank, bringing the total number of the arrested in the West Bank to over 100.

The crackdown in the West Bank was seen a response to the sweep in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

In June 2007, Hamas routed Abbas' security forces and took over the Gaza Strip by force, tightening its grip on the coastal strip and gradually ousting the long-dominant Fatah.