The Palestinian Authority’s (PA) foreign ministry denied on Sunday remarks allegedly given by Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki that Hamas was involved in attacks on Egyptian army forces in the Sinai Peninsula.
Maliki was recently quoted as saying that the PA had become “convinced” that Hamas was involved in the recent attacks on Egyptian troops in Sheikh Zuweid, North Sinai, which left at least 17 soldiers dead, according to Egypt’s army.
The same reports had quoted Maliki as saying that Cairo had informed the PA it possessed evidence of Hamas’s involvement.
The foreign ministry, however, dismissed the reports as “untrue rumors”, urging media outlets to be accurate.
A spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezz Eddin al-Qassam brigades, also denied the accusations. “Our target is occupied Palestine and nothing else”, he said.
Hamas, widely seen as a Muslim Brotherhood offshoot, has repeatedly rebuffed Egypt’s accusations of involvement in terrorist operations. A number of group members are standing trial in absentia over terrorism and espionage charges which allegedly occurred during the Muslim Brotherhood’s rule two years ago.
Edited translation from Anadolu Agency
