Israel extends detention of sister of Hamas leader Haniyeh

An Israeli court has extended the detention of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh's sister, Sabah, for the third time on Monday.

The 57-year-old's detention was prolonged by two days following her arrest two weeks ago from her home in Tel Al-Saba, a village in Israel's Naqab (Negev) region, The New Arab's Arabic edition Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported.

Sabah's lawyer Khaled Zabarqa said prosecutors requested to extend her detention to reportedly complete an investigation into charges, including "incitement" and "communication with a foreign agent".

Reporting on 1 April that Sabah had been arrested, AFP cited a police spokesperson as saying she was "suspected of having contact with Hamas operatives and identifying with the organisation while inciting and supporting acts of terrorism in Israel".

Sabah is a married mother of six and a grandmother who suffers from health issues.

Israeli police also arrested two of her sons, but they were later released.

The police and Shabak (Shin Bet) internal security agency alleged in a statement that they found at Sabah's house "documents, means of communication, phones, and other evidence linking her to serious security offences" as well as hundreds of thousands of shekels in cash.

Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas's political bureau, lives in Qatar.

He has lost dozens of relatives since Israel's war on Gaza began, including three sons and five grandchildren who died after an Israeli strike targeted their car last week.

"There is no doubt that this criminal enemy is driven by the spirit of revenge and the spirit of murder and bloodshed, and it does not observe any standards or laws," Haniyeh told Al Jazeera at the time.

Israel's war on Gaza has so far killed at least 33,843 people, the strip's health ministry said on Tuesday.

The International Criminal Court in January found that Israel was plausibly breaching the UN Genocide Convention in the enclave.

Agencies contributed to this report.