Tel Aviv, Dec 25 : The Hamas militant group has claimed that they have arrested some Palestinians who were working for Israeli intelligence agency, Shin Bet in the Gaza Strip and were providing inputs on the whereabouts of top Hamas leaders.

While Sydney Airport confirmed there were no operational issues at the airport on Monday, the disruptions were likely a knock-on effect from delays and cancellations on Christmas Eve caused by heavy rain and thunderstorms, local news website News.com.au said.

By 7 a.m. on Monday (2000 GMT Sunday), the arrivals and departures board on Sydney Airport's website showed 23 flights had already been cancelled for the day, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Virgin Australia confirmed the cancellations were due to the adverse weather in and around Sydney over the past 24 hours, the report said.

The cancellations on Monday included seven Virgin flights, six Qantas, and three Jetstar, as well as some operated by small regional airlines, the Australian news channel Sky News reported.

On Sunday, the New South Wales (NSW) State Emergency Service carried out 20 flood rescues across Sydney and responded to reports of 30 homes inundated in the city's southern suburb of Pagewood, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported.