The Palestinian Authority’s security services continue to detain former Islamic bloc representative at the American University in Jenin Tahir Ahmad Nawahda for the seventh day in a row.

A Hamas statement issued yesterday noted that Nawahda was arrested by the Preventive Security Service shortly after he was released from an Israeli jail, where he was held for 16 months. He was later released again, then re-arrested a week ago and detained at the General Intelligence Service.

The statement said that members of the PA’s security services broke into Nawahda’s home in the town of Yamoun, near Jenin, on 9 April and took him away.

The Islamic bloc in the American University condemned the arrest calling for Nawahda’s release and a halt in the political arrests being carried out by security forces against university students.

In an earlier statement, the bloc said that Nawahda’s arrest by the PA’s security apparatus proves that the latter is continuing its security coordination with Israel despite its repeated affirmations that such coordination has ended.

Student blocs at the American University have issued a unified statement, demanding the PA’s security services stop interfering in the lives of university students and accusing them of violating students’ freedoms and activities.

The General Intelligence Service in Jenin released student Esmat Al-Qasem two days ago. Al-Qasem was arrested on 4 April while he was walking in the city.

(Middle East Monitor – www.middleeastmonitor.com)