NABLUS (Ma'an) -- Hamas on Thursday accused Palestinian Authority security forces of detaining two party affiliates in the northern West Bank.

A statement from the ruling party in Gaza said the Hamas members, who were not named, were taken from their villages of Tell and Asira al-Qibliya on Wednesday night.

Both Hamas and Fatah have accused each other of conducting politically-motivated arrests against their members in the factions' respective areas of control.

Under a reconciliation deal signed by the parties on May 4, the former rivals agreed to create a committee to deal with the issue of political arrests and to facilitate the release of Hamas members in PA custody who have not been not charged with any criminal offense.

Party leaders say the release of prisoners is vital for implementation of the deal, but progress appears to have stalled despite previous assertions by officials on both sides that the issue was due to be finalized by the end of September.

In July, a Hamas statement said 68 members had been detained in the West Bank despite the reconciliation deal.

On Monday, Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad said that Fatah and Hamas officials were scheduled to meet in Cairo by the beginning of October for further dialogue over reconciliation talks.