Israeli occupation forces arrested on Friday a former Palestinian minister in the northern West Bank.

Israeli occupation forces arrested on Friday a former Palestinian minister in the northern West Bank.

Wasfi Qabha, who is an official in Islamic Resistance Movement “Hamas”, was taken from his home in Jenin early on Friday morning, Palestinian security officials said.

Locals said soldiers surrounded Qabha's home amid intensive shooting and took the 50-year-old to an unknown location.

In 2007, Qabha was arrested by Israeli forces and detained without charge for three years under administrative detention. He had served as a minister for prisoner affairs in 2006.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said troops detained eight Palestinians overnight from the West Bank. She could not immediately identify the detainees but said one man was detained in Jenin.

The Israeli army has detained at least 11 Hamas politicians in the West Bank since last October.