RAMALLAH, April 25 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli army arrested early on Tuesday Farahat Asaad, Hamas spokesman in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Palestinian sources and witnesses said.

    The sources said that Israeli soldiers stormed al Tira town of Ramallah and surrounded house of Farhat Asaad before taking him handcuffed.

    Asaad, who also works in the Prisoners Affairs Ministry, was released from Israeli jail last September.

    Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, told Xinhua over phone that he considered the detention as part of Israeli escalation and campaign against the Palestinian people in general and Hamas in particular.

    Threatening and arresting Hamas leaders in Jerusalem and West Bank cities will not turn Hamas aside from serving the Palestinian people and their cause, he added.

    West Bank cities still witness almost daily Israeli arrest campaign and incursion to search for those wanted by Israel, according to Palestinian sources.

    Meanwhile, Israeli troops stormed the West Bank city of Nablus on Tuesday, surrounding a house amid fierce gunshots and ordering its residents to evacuate.

    Israel has vowed to shun the Hamas-led Palestinian government, warning that Hamas leaders remain targets of its military actions. Hamas is committed itself to Israel's destruction and insists on armed resistance against an Israeli occupation. Enditem