Palestinian jihadis appear to have issued a death threat against Home Secretary Priti Patel in the belief she is an undercover agent for Israel.

The message from Damascus-based militia Islamic Jihad was uncovered by highly influential think tank Policy Exchange following the UK government’s move to bring in a full ban on terror group Hamas, which is a longstanding ally of the Islamist outfit.

It said: "It is clear that there is a Zionist minister in the British government who works under the orders of Bennett, Lapid and Gantz, and who must be held accountable.”

The Arabic version of the statement by Khaled al-Batsh, a member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad politburo, employs the feminine form for a minister, and is thought to refer to Ms Patel, who was behind the ban on Hamas.

Experts said designation of ‘agent for Israel’ typically serves as a death sentence in the eyes of jihadists.

Al-Batsh used the phrase "yajibu an tuhasaba” which means “she should be held to account”.

The word “tuhasab” has Islamic resonance and constitutes a threat, but it is not clear whether it is a clear call for violence.

The Jewish Chronicle has alerted the Home Secretary to the message.

Speaking to the Palestinian Donia Al-Watan news outlet, al-Batsch said: "We consider the [British] decision a major aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and an attempt to block the way for all the free people in Britain who demonstrated by hundreds of thousands during the Battle of Sword of Jerusalem, and this decision could deprive them of showing support for the Palestinian cause.

He added: "It is clear that there is a Zionist minister in the British government who works under the orders of Bennett, Lapid and Gantz, and who must be held accountable.”

Sir John Jenkins, senior fellow at Policy Exchange, said:  “Al Batsh’s statement is a clever piece of doublespeak. On the surface, it is simply an intemperate condemnation.

“But by linking the demand for accountability to the accusation that a female minister is under the direct control of the Israeli leadership, he evokes the treatment meted out to Palestinians whom Hamas or PIJ regard as collaborators.

“And he calls on sympathisers in Britain to take action to prevent the proscription taking effect.”

There was cross-party support in the Commons on Wednesday for Hamas to join 78 other organisations on the UK’s list as proscribed terrorist organisations.

The ban is due to come into force today.   It will bring the UK in line with the US and Europe which already proscribe Hamas in its entirety.