CBNNews.com - NABLUS, West Bank - As part of a stepped-up initiative to thwart funding of the Gaza-based Hamas terror group, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) ordered a shopping mall closed in the Palestinian Authority- (PA) controlled city of Nablus (biblical Shechem).

In a pre-dawn raid at the offices of al-I'itiman Investment Company in the city's only mall, the IDF seized computers, furniture and documents.

Closure notices posted at the mall warned that anyone operating a business after August 15 could face a five-year jail term.

According to an IDF spokesman, the army is moving against "organizations acting on behalf of Hamas."

These organizations are committed to strengthening the Islamist movement "to encourage terror attacks against Israel [and] to give financial support to terrorism's infrastructure."

While Nablus mayor said the "mall belongs to the people and not to Hamas," operating "in accordance with Palestinian Authority regulations," an Israeli security official said "the profits generated by these boutiques are used to sponsor terrorism."

The IDF has stepped up its activities against civilian entities linked to the terror group, which serve as fronts for large amounts of money that fund Hamas.

Source: YNet news