Gaza City - The Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip said on Saturday that it is holding a number of prisoners in an "alternative detention facility," following the destruction of Gaza's central prison by the Israel military in the recent conflict in the Strip.

Islam Shahwan, a spokesman for Hamas police forces in Gaza said that the prisoners were "jailed for being involved in clannish fighting and attacks on public institutions."

On February 10, Hamas were accused by Amnesty International of conducting a series of abductions and killings of so-called "collaborators," in the wake of the December-January conflict in the territory.

Shahwan said that Hamas would not disclose the location of the detention facility "due to security reasons and in order to maintain the lives of the inmates and the jailors."

Four prisoners were killed on December 28th when Israeli warplanes bombed the central prison in Gaza as part of its 22-day onslaught in Gaza Strip. Hamas was keeping the prisoners inside though it had evacuated all its security facilities. (dpa)