GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s Hamas rulers have shut the offices of a Qatari-Palestinian cellular provider in connection with its investigation into an explosion that targeted the visiting Palestinian prime minister.
Hamas police spokesman Ayman Batniji said Saturday that Wataniya Mobile, a subsidiary of Qatar’s Ooredoo, was being closed down for “refusing to cooperate” in the inquiry.
A roadside bomb struck a convoy carrying Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah last week after he crossed into Gaza from Israel, wounding some of his bodyguards. Reports said a second bomb that failed to detonate contained a Wataniya SIM card.
Hamdallah’s West Bank-based Palestinian Authority held Hamas responsible for the attack.
Hamas, which overthrew Palestinian Authority forces in 2007 to seize control of Gaza, rejected the accusation and appears to be looking to shift blame to others.