Palestine’s secular Fatah movement, headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, claimed on Sunday that Hamas security services in Gaza have arrested some of its members, Arab48.com has reported.

According to Fatah, a number of people were arrested for their participation in the recent demonstrations about the severe electricity shortages in the Gaza Strip. Furthermore, claimed Fatah, the security services in Gaza arrested 15 of its members on Sunday in different areas across the coastal enclave.

A spokesman for the Interior Ministry in Gaza, Iyad Al-Bozom, denied the claim. Speaking to Anadolu, he said that these are “false claims” intended to “incite” the public against Hamas and its security services. However, he accepted that the security services had arrested a number of civilians for damaging private and public property during the demonstrations against the electricity crisis. All of those arrested were released after signing a pledge not to damage or attack private or public property in the future.

Meanwhile, Hamas and Islamic Jihad accused the PA security services in the occupied West Bank of arresting dozens of their members. Islamic Jihad said on Sunday that the PA had arrested several of its members who are ex-prisoners of the Israelis. The PA has denied the accusations.