A Palestinian security court sentenced a Hamas veteran...

A Palestinian security court sentenced a Hamas veteran to death for helping Israeli intelligence track and kill five fellow members of the Islamic militant group between 1987 and 1995. Waleed Hamdya confessed to the charges, Palestinian security officials told Reuters following the one-day trial before a three-judge panel in Gaza City. They described him as the most senior Palestinian collaborator ever uncovered. According to the charge sheet, Israel's security services recruited Hamdya in 1987, at the beginning of the first Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. He provided intelligence enabling Israel to kill five of his comrades, including the Hamas military commander in the Gaza Strip in 1993, the charge sheet said. Hamdya was detained on suspicion of collaborating in 1995. Hamdya's sentence of death by firing squad requires ratification by Palestinian President Yasser Arafat. There is no right of appeal. Three men have been executed on similar charges since Palestinians launched their current revolt in September 2000. At least another 20 men suspected of collaborating have been gunned down by vigilantes. The killings drew international censure. Israeli security officials say collaborators are rarely caught, and decline to comment on specific convictions in Palestinian courts. Hamas is a fundamentalist group dedicated to Israel's destruction and has spearheaded suicide bombing campaigns against the Jewish state. Its members have a reputation for loyalty, making the Hamdya case especially unusual. Hamdya was among 400 Hamas militants briefly expelled by Israel in 1992. "Since Waleed Hamdya has confessed that he is a criminal and a collaborator then he deserves the punishment. We support any decision taken in this regard, as long as the decision is based on justice," senior Hamas leader Ismail Abu Shanab told Reuters.