Hamas sentences 4 to death for 'spying'

A military court in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip on Wednesday sentences four Palestinians to death on charges of spying for Israel, a statement and court sources says.

The court says in a brief statement that a 23-year-old man from the Zeitoun area south of Gaza City had been sentenced to death on espionage charges. It does not provide his name.

Three other men who “fled from justice” are also found guilty in absentia, it says.

A court source tells AFP the four were convicted on “charges of spying for the occupation,” including “surveillance” and providing information about cars and homes to help Israel plan alleged assassinations.

Before these sentences, 167 people had been sentenced to death by courts in Gaza and the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights.

— AFP