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GAZA - Hamas security forces in the Gaza Strip have seized a leading member of the al Qaeda-inspired Army of Islam, the group which says it is holding BBC correspondent Alan Johnston hostage.
Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters the man known as Khattab al-Maqdessi, who had acted as a spokesman for the group, was detained by Hamas's Executive Force after a gunbattle. His real name is Ahmed al-Mathloum, a source in Hamas said.
A source close to the Army of Islam said he had been surprised near his home and seized after an exchange of fire.
The Army of Islam, which is linked to one of Gaza's powerful clans, has issued videos on websites used by al Qaeda militants showing Johnston.
The group's precise ties to al Qaeda groups elsewhere are unclear. It is seeking the release of prisoners in Britain and other countries and has threatened to kill Johnston, who went missing in March, if security forces try to free him by force.
Hamas's Abu Zuhri said the Army of Islam seized 10 students who support Hamas after Maqdessi's capture. The Executive Force detained other members of the radical group last week.
"The arrests were carried out after all negotiation attempts and the use of peaceful means failed to free the abducted journalist," the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry said in a statement in Gaza.
"The arrests are targeting figures who were involved in the abduction of the journalist," the statement said.
The Hamas Islamist movement seized control of the Gaza Strip three weeks ago, routing security forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Hamas's local leader, Ismail Haniyeh, still considers himself prime minister but Abbas, based in the larger West Bank, has formed another, emergency government.
- REUTERS
