Al-Quds Brigades – Islamic Jihad
The al-Quds Brigades constitute the armed wing of Islamic Jihad (PIJ). It is the second-largest armed group in Gaza after Hamas‘ Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (IQB). Islamic Jihad also has a growing presence in the West Bank where often its cooperates with Fatah‘s al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and Hamas‘s Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. It is particularly active in the northern West Bank towns of Nablus, and Jenin where it operates under the umbrella of the so-called ‘Jenin Battalion’.
The group emerged from Islamic Jihad’s Saif al-Islam Brigades which were active during the first intifada. Following Israel’s assassination of the organisation’s founder Fathi al-Shikaki in 1995, the al-Quds Brigades carried out numerous attacks against Israeli civilians, including suicide bombings. It has fought in several wars in Gaza against Israel.