The Israeli army on Friday detained the widow of a Hamas leader killed in the 1990s, accusing her of inciteful language against Israel online.
Hiyam Ayyash, the widow of Yahya Ayyash who was a commander in Hamas' armed wing Al-Qassam Brigades, was arrested in Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
Citing a local source, The New Arab’s sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed said Israeli forces raided neighbourhoods in the city, including the Jabal al-Shamali area, searching several homes before detaining Ayyash, who is in her fifties.
According to the sources, the army posted a sign at the entrance of Ayyash’s home following her arrest, which read: "The mother of Al-Baraa has been arrested for incitement on the internet," accompanied by an image of a post allegedly attributed to her on Facebook.
It was unclear where she was being kept in custody.
Her husband was one of the most prominent leaders of the Al-Qassam Brigades and was assassinated by Israel in Gaza in January 1996, by means of a mobile phone rigged with explosives.
Meanwhile, local sources said Israeli settlers set fire early Friday to a school in the village of Jalud, south of Nablus, burning its gymnasium and causing material damage to the premises.
In northwestern Nablus, settlers also set fire to six Palestinian vehicles in the village of Bizzariya.
"Early this morning, settlers burned six Palestinian vehicles in Bizzariya and spray-painted racist slogans on the walls of several homes before fleeing the scene. The fire was later brought under control after residents woke up," former head of Bizzariya’s village council, Taysir Sfarini, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Later in the day, settlers reportedly blocked the road leading to the Khillat al-Sidra Bedouin community near the village of Mukhmas, northeast of occupied Jerusalem.
According to the Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate, as cited by news agency WAFA, a group of settlers closed the road leading to the community, which has repeatedly been subjected to attacks by settlers and Israeli forces.
Israeli attacks have increased in the West Bank since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023.
Over one thousand Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or extremist settlers since then, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Attacks have especially spiked since the start of last year, particularly in recent months.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and more than 500,000 Israelis live in illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory, not including Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem.
The far-right Israeli government has move forward with approving more settlements despite global outcry.