Palestinian Authority arrest raid sparks West Bank clashes

A rare operation by the Palestinian Authority security forces to arrest a Hamas member sparked clashes in the West Bank city of Nablus, multiple sources said.

Unrest persisted through the morning, with hundreds of youths hurling rocks at PA armoured vehicles and the sound of gunfire ringing out across the city centre

Hamas, historic rivals of the secular Fatah movement that controls the PA, condemned the arrest of 30-year-old Musaab Shtayyeh, calling it a "kidnapping... a national crime" and a "stain" on the PA's image.

It demanded the immediate release of Shtayyeh and Ameed Tbaileh, who was arrested with him, and blasted the PA for keeping up security coordination with Israel. 

"The authority has positioned itself as an exclusive agent of the occupation (Israel) in the face of our Palestinian people," the statement said.

While Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's forces maintain security ties with Israel, which has occupied the West Bank since 1967, PA raids targeting Hamas members are not common.

Fatah and Hamas have made various reconciliation attempts in recent years but relations remain tense. Hamas has controlled Gaza since 2007, when it ousted PA forces from the coastal enclave in deadly street battles.

The northern West Bank has suffered near daily violence in recent months.

Dozens of Palestinians, including fighters, have been killed in the raids that began after a series of deadly attacks against Israeli targets in March.