Israeli police detained seven Palestinian activists campaigning yesterday in Arab East Jerusalem for next week's Palestinian parliamentary election, accusing them of belonging to an outlawed group.

It appeared to be the largest number of Palestinians held in the city for campaigning since the Israeli government voted on Sunday to approve voting on January 25 in East Jerusalem, an area at the centre of the Middle East conflict.

Shmuel Ben-Ruby, a spokesman for Jerusalem police, said the activists were taken for questioning while they were trying to convene a news conference at an East Jerusalem hotel.

Among those in custody was the head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a group outlawed by Israel for involvement in attacks against its civilians during a more than five year Palestinian uprising, police said. Police have previously arrested several members of Hamas for campaigning in Jerusalem.

PHOTO CAPTION

Israeli police arrest members of Hamas in Jerusalem's Old City Sunday Jan. 15, 2006. (AP)