Hamas-run court in Gaza sentences man to death by hanging for 'collaborating with the occupation.'

A Hamas military court in the Gaza Strip on Thursday sentenced a Palestinian to be hanged to death after he was found guilty of "collaborating with Israel," a court source said.

The defendant, identified only by his initials A.S., was "sentenced to death by hanging after being convicted of collaborating with the occupation," the source said.

There were no further details on the allegations against him.

Under Hamas and Palestinian Authority law, those convicted of "collaborating" with Israel, murder or drug trafficking face the death penalty.

All execution orders must in theory be approved by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas before they can be carried out, but Hamas, the Islamist terrorist group that rules the Gaza Strip,does not recognize his legitimacy and regularly carries out executions without his approval.

At least one Palestinian accused of collaborating with Israel has been sentenced to death this year Abbas's Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria.

In Gaza, beyond death sentences handed out by courts, Hamas has also carried out summary executions for alleged Israel spies, sometimes in public places.

The most prominent occurred during last summer's 50-day war between Islamist terrorists in the territory and Israel, when a firing squad of men in uniforms from Hamas' armed wing shot dead six people in front of Gaza City's main mosque.

Rights groups have repeatedly condemned the executions - particularly those without trial - and have noted that in many cases charges of "collaboration" are merely used as a cover by Hamas to get rid of its opponents.