Hamas said that Islamic State will not have a foothold in Palestinian territory in a statement made on Thursday.
The statement came after it detained lawbreakers for setting of explosions near its headquarters and the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.
A senior Hamas spokesperson, Sami Abu Zuhri, said,
“There is nothing called this Islamic State in the Gaza Strip. We do not fight people because of what they think, but at the same time, we do not allow any violation of security, whether by groups or individuals.”
A senior Israeli security official, commenting on Hamas’ statement, said,
“There are lots of these hard-line, ‘right of Hamas’ Islamist groups operating in Gaza. That’s been the case for years. So if one decides to change its name to something ISIS related, that’s not itself so significant.”