Islamist anti-Hamas groups in the Gaza Strip#Lions of Monotheism

Islamist militant groups in the Gaza Strip, which are critical of Hamas, have several general points of unity:

• Opposition to Palestinian nationalism and adherence to pan-Islamism{{Cite journal |last=Schweitzer |first=Yoram |title=Salafi Jihadism in Gaza as Opposition to Hamas Rule |url=https://www.inss.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/GazaCrisis_ENG-63-68.pdf |journal=Institute for National Security Studies}}
• Opposition to democracy and other aspects of secularism.
• Opposition to Shia Islam, on the grounds that most of Hamas' allies are Shia, including Iran and Hezbollah.
• Opposition to Hamas' tolerance of perceived liberal attitudes and culture among the Gazan population, including tolerance of music.{{Cite magazine |last=Marks |first=Monica |date=2023-10-30 |title=Hamas Is Not ISIS. Here's Why That Matters |url=https://time.com/6329776/hamas-isis-gaza/ |access-date=2024-07-09 |magazine=TIME |language=en}}

Salafism was first introduced into the Gaza Strip in the 1970s by Palestinian students who had returned from studying abroad at religious schools in Saudi Arabia.{{Cite journal |last=Clarke |first=Colin P. |date=11 October 2017 |title=How Salafism's Rise Threatens Gaza |url=https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2017/10/how-salafisms-rise-threatens-gaza.html |website=RAND}} The early movement was seen as helping Saudi efforts to propagate Wahhabism (which is often seen as a subset of Salafism{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Caryle |date=5 September 2006 |title=For conservative Muslims, goal of isolation a challenge |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/04/AR2006090401107_pf.html |newspaper=The Washington Post}}{{cite report |url=http://conflictsforum.org/briefings/Wahhabism-Salafism-and-Islamism.pdf |title=Wahhabism, salafism and Islamism: Who is the enemy? |last=Moussalli |first=Ahmad |date=January 2009 |access-date=8 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140623113340/http://conflictsforum.org/briefings/Wahhabism-Salafism-and-Islamism.pdf |archive-date=23 June 2014 |url-status=dead |type=briefing |series=Conflicts Forum Monograph |website=Conflicts Forum (conflictsforum.org)}}) and counter the Iranian Shia Islam of Ruhollah Khomeini. According to journalist Jared Maslin, a number of Salafi groups in the Gaza Strip continue to receive support and funding from the Saudi government today.

The first documented Salafi organization in the Gaza Strip was "Dar al-Kitab wa-al-Sunna" (House of the Book and Sunnah), established in 1975 by Sheikh Yasin al-Astal, which was non-violent and focused on preaching and education. During this time, Gazan Salafis distanced themselves from Palestinian politics and the struggle against Israel. Many Palestinians distrusted them, and as a result they were sometimes marginalized and isolated.

The integration of jihadist ideology into Gazan Salafism began in the 2000s, and appears to have correlated with similar radicalization processes in the Sinai; the first reports on "violent Salafis" date to this period as well.{{Cite web |last=Irgens |first=Marcus Arctander |date=2018 |title=-A narrow dominion? Gaza's Salafi-Jihadis in the fallout of the Arab Spring |url=https://www.duo.uio.no/bitstream/handle/10852/64350/Irgens-Master-MES-2018-Spring.pdf |website=University of Oslo}}{{Cite journal |last=Herman |first=Lyndall |date=June 2016 |title=Sisi, the Sinai and Salafis: Instability in a Power Vacuum |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mepo.12197 |journal=Middle East Policy |language=en |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=95–107 |doi=10.1111/mepo.12197 |issn=1061-1924}} After a period of stagnation, a number of Salafi jihadist groups began to appear in 2005 as Israel prepared for its disengagement from the Gaza Strip.

More groups formed around 2007 in reaction to Hamas taking control of the Gaza Strip.https://ecfr.eu/special/mapping_palestinian_politics/salafi_jihadis/ "A small number of different Salafi-jihadi groups formed following Hamas’s seizure of the Gaza Strip in 2007. Some of these groups were formed by disgruntled Hamas members who had grown increasingly critical of what they saw as the group’s softening of positions towards Israel. Other groups were formed by clans as a way of gaining political legitimacy."

{{infobox war faction

| name = Army of Islam
جَيش الإسلام
Jaysh al-Islām

| image =

| imagesize =

| caption = Logo of the Army of Islam

| dates = 2005–present

| leader = Mumtaz Dughmush

| partof =

| clans = Dogmush clan

| motives = The creation of an Islamic state in Palestine, and the restoration of the caliphate

| area = Gaza Strip, Egypt, Syria

| ideology = Salafism
Jihadism
Sunni Islamism

| allies =

| opponents = {{flag|Israel}}
{{flag|Hamas}}

}}

{{main|Army of Islam (Gaza)}}

{{see also| Dogmush clan

| Sinai insurgency #In the Gaza Strip

| Fayeq Al-Mabhouh }}

Jaysh al-Islam ("The Army of Islam") was founded in late 2005{{cite news |date=2011-05-19 |title=Designation of Army of Islam |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/05/163838.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216231148/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/05/163838.htm |archive-date=16 February 2020 |access-date=26 October 2023 |publisher=State Department}} by the Dogmush clan, a Gazan criminal family.{{Cite web |title=The moment of greatest danger: After 97 days held captive in Gaza - Times Online |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1945825.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726122236/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1945825.ece |archive-date=2008-07-26 |access-date=2007-10-22}} It was initially close to Hamas, and they participated together in the kidnapping of Israeli Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit in 2006. The group also carried out the kidnapping of two Fox News journalists in 2006.

The Army of Islam began to turn against Hamas in the months preceding the latter's takeover of Gaza, and organized the kidnapping of British journalist Alan Johnston in March 2007{{cite news |date=2010-11-03 |title=One killed in Gaza car explosion |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2010/11/3/one-killed-in-gaza-car-explosion |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231026181608/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2010/11/3/one-killed-in-gaza-car-explosion |archive-date=26 October 2023 |access-date=26 October 2023 |work=Al Jazeera}} with the likely intention of embarrassing Hamas. After it seized power in June 2007, Hamas was able to secure Johnston's release,{{cite news |author=Associated Press |date=4 July 2007 |title=Hamas says kidnapped British reporter Alan Johnston has been released |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/07/04/africa/ME-GEN-Palestinians-BBC-Reporter.php |accessdate=4 July 2007 |work=International Herald Tribune}} and subsequently began to suppress the Army of Islam's activities, which nonetheless continued sporadically and included attacks on co-ed schools, local Christians, and a YMCA building.

Egyptian authorities stated that the January 2011 Alexandria bombing was carried out by the Army of Islam.{{cite news |last=Issacharoff |first=Avi |date=August 22, 2013 |title=Egypt's ire raised as Hamas harbors Sinai jihadists |url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/egypt-grapples-with-gaza-based-sinai-jihadists/ |access-date=September 30, 2014 |newspaper=The Times of Israel |quote=Their leader, Mohammed Dormosh, is well known for his ties to the Hamas leadership.}}{{cite news |date=January 23, 2011 |title=Egypt blames Gaza group for bombing |url=http://m.aljazeera.com/story/201112311414915283 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006164228/http://m.aljazeera.com/story/201112311414915283 |archive-date=October 6, 2014 |access-date=September 30, 2014 |publisher=Al Jazeera}}{{cite web |last=Gold |first=Dore |date=April 27, 2014 |title=The Myth of the Moderate Hamas |url=http://jcpa.org/the-myth-of-the-moderate-hamas/ |access-date=September 30, 2014 |publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs}}{{cite news |date=July 4, 2007 |title=Army of Islam says Shalit now solely under control of Hamas |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/army-of-islam-says-shalit-now-solely-under-control-of-hamas-1.224805 |access-date=September 30, 2014 |newspaper=Haaretz |quote=We at Army of Islam made the preparations for operation 'Dissipating Illusion,' which was carried out in cooperation with the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade and the Popular Resistance Committees Salah a-Din. We kidnapped Gilad Shalit and handed him over to Hamas.}} The attack, which targeted Coptic Christians, was the deadliest act of violence against the community in a decade, since the Kosheh massacre in 2000 which left 20 Copts dead.{{Cite news |last1=Fahim |first1=Kareem |last2=Stack |first2=Liam |date=1 January 2011 |title=Fatal Bomb Hits a Church in Egypt |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/world/middleeast/02egypt.html?_r=3&hp |access-date=3 January 2011 |newspaper=The New York Times}}

The group participated in the Sinai insurgency{{Cite web |date=2014-07-22 |title=Jaysh al-Islam |url=https://timep.org/2014/07/22/jaysh-al-islam/ |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy - |language=en-US}} alongside Al-Tawhid wal-Jihad and the Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem, and smuggled members into the Gaza Strip for training, later sending them back to the Sinai Peninsula to carry out attacks.{{cite web |date=7 August 2013 |title=Gaza terrorists infiltrate Sinai |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4402384,00.html/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130821193527/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4402384,00.html |archive-date=21 August 2013 |access-date=22 August 2013 |publisher=Ynet News}} Army of Islam members linked to the August 2012 Sinai attack have reportedly sought refuge in the Gaza Strip.

In a 2019 interview, the Army of Islam condemned Hamas as an "apostate" group.{{cite web |author=Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi |date=25 January 2019 |title=Jaysh al-Islam in Gaza: Exclusive Interview |url=http://www.aymennjawad.org/2019/01/jaysh-al-islam-in-gaza-exclusive-interview |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190214002850/http://www.aymennjawad.org/2019/01/jaysh-al-islam-in-gaza-exclusive-interview |archive-date=14 February 2019 |access-date=13 February 2019}}

The group may have completely collapsed as a result of the ongoing Gaza war (2023–present), on account of the Dogmush clan appearing to have been nearly wiped out by Israeli bombings,{{Cite web |title=من القاتل الحقيقي لمختار عائلة دغمش في غزة؟ |url=https://www.aljazeera.net/news/2024/3/17/1210 |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=الجزيرة نت |language=ar}}{{Cite web |date=2023-12-17 |title=مجزرة مسجد إحياء السنة / عائلة دغمش {{!}} المجازر الإسرائيلية |url=https://pal48.ps/ar/article/984/%D9%85%D8%AC%D8%B2%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%AC%D8%AF-%D8%A5%D8%AD%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%AF%D8%BA%D9%85%D8%B4 |access-date=2024-04-03 |website=فلسطيننا |language=ar}} and Hamas reportedly executing their leader for stealing humanitarian aid.{{Cite web |date=14 March 2024 |title=Hamas said to execute leader of Gaza's powerful Doghmush clan |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/hamas-said-to-execute-leader-of-gazas-powerful-doghmush-clan/ |website=The Times of Israel}}

{{Main article| Jaysh al-Ummah (Gaza) }}

Jaysh al-Ummah ("The Army of the Ummah") formed in June 2007 and took credit for firing three rockets into Israel that month. Unlike other groups, it has avoided claiming responsibility for internal attacks inside Gaza and instead has focused on attacks on Israel. In January 2008 they declared their intent to assassinate American president George W. Bush and stressed their alignment with Al-Qaeda. Abu Hafs al-Maqdisi, the group's leader, condemned Hamas for not implementing Sharia law, and would end up temporarily detained by Hamas himself. Since then, the two groups have had a mutual hostility but refrain from openly fighting.

Jaysh al-Ummah nonetheless fought alongside Hamas in the 2012 Gaza conflict{{cite news |author= |date= |title=Jaysh al-Ummah (Gaza) |url=https://ecfr.eu/special/mapping_palestinian_politics/jaysh_al_umma_gaza/ |access-date=18 June 2021 |work=European Council on Foreign Relations}} and the 2014 Gaza War.{{cite news |author= |date= |title=Jaysh al-Ummah fi Aknaf Bayt al-Maqdis |url=https://jihadintel.meforum.org/group/135/jaysh-al-ummah-fi-bayt-al-maqdis |access-date=18 June 2021 |work=Jihad Intel}} It claimed responsibility for a rocket attack on Israel in 2019{{cite news |author=Joe Truzman |date=1 April 2021 |title=Jaysh al-Ummah emir offers solution to 'Palestinian case', derides 'Resistance' leaders |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/04/jaysh-al-ummah-emir-offers-solution-to-palestinian-case-derides-resistance-leaders.php |access-date=18 June 2021 |work=FDD's Long War Journal}} and also claimed to have taken part in the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, shooting rockets at Israeli targets.{{cite news |author=Joe Truzman |date=4 June 2021 |title=Analysis: 17 Palestinian militant factions identified in recent Gaza conflict |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/06/analysis-17-palestinian-militant-factions-identified-in-recent-gaza-conflict.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605024417/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/06/analysis-17-palestinian-militant-factions-identified-in-recent-gaza-conflict.php |archive-date=5 June 2021 |access-date=5 June 2021 |work=FDD's Long War Journal}}{{cite news |author=Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi |date=12 May 2021 |title=Jaysh al-Ummah Statements and Materials on Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque |url=https://www.aymennjawad.org/2021/05/jaysh-al-ummah-statements-and-materials |access-date=18 June 2021 |work=}} During the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, the group reported that it attacked IDF troops in the Gaza Strip.{{Cite web |date=2023-12-19 |title=Al Qaeda-aligned Jaysh al-Ummah says it is fighting Israeli troops in Gaza {{!}} FDD's Long War Journal |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2023/12/al-qaeda-aligned-jaysh-al-ummah-says-it-is-fighting-israeli-troops-in-gaza.php |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=www.longwarjournal.org |language=en-US}}

{{infobox militant organization

| name = Swords of Truth
{{langx|ar|سيوف الحق}}
Suyuf al-Haq

| logo =

| caption =

| native_name =

| native_name_lang = ar

| other_name = "Righteous Swords of Islam" or the "Swords of Islamic Righteousness"

| leader = Abu Suheib al-Maqdisi

| foundation =

| dates =

| dissolved =

| merger =

| split =

| predecessor =

| merged =

| successor =

| country =

| allegiance =

| clans =

| motives =

| area = Gaza Strip, Palestine

| headquarters = Beit Hanoun, Gaza Strip

| newspaper =

| ideology = * Islamic theocracy

• Anti-democracy
• Anti-Christian sentiments

| position =

| slogan =

| crimes =

| attacks = 2007 bombing of Gaza YMCA's library.{{efn| Gaza YMCA was also bombed on Saturday 17 December 2023 by the IDF.{{cite web | url=https://www.ymca.int/ymca-gaza-is-hit/ | title=YMCA building in Gaza City hit | date=18 December 2023 }}{{cite web | url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/16/israel-bombards-northern-and-southern-gaza-many-reported-dead.html | title=Israel bombards northern and southern Gaza, many reported dead | website=CNBC | date=16 December 2023 }} }}

| status =

| size =

| revenue =

| financing =

| partof =

| allies =

| opponents = {{unbulleted|

• {{flag|Hamas}}
• {{flagicon image| Coat of arms of Palestine (alternative).svg}} Gaza's police
• {{flagicon image| Christian cross.svg}} Christians in Palestine

}}

| battles =

| flag =

| website =

| module =

| module2 =

}}

{{about

| the group in the Gaza Strip

| the Iraqi militant group "Saraya Sayuf Al-Haq" | Swords of Righteousness Brigade

| section=yes }}

{{visible anchor|Swords of Truth}}, also known by their Arabic name {{visible anchor|Suyuf al-Haq}} ({{langx|ar| سيوف الحق | Suyūf al-Ħaq | translation = The Swords of Truth}} or "The Swords of Righteousness"),{{cite news | script-title= ar:غزة: جماعة باسم "سيوف الحق" تهدد بمهاجمة قادة حماس | url= https://www.arab48.com/%D9%81%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%B7%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA/%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1/2010/10/31/%D8%BA%D8%B2%D8%A9-%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%85-%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%81-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%82-%D8%AA%D9%87%D8%AF%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D9%85%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%AF%D8%A9-%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3 | access-date= 2 August 2024 | work=موقع عرب 48 | date= 16 August 2009 | language=en}} is or was a "veteran" group primarily concentrated in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip. It is supposedly led by former Hamas cleric Abu Suheib al-Maqdisi, who left Hamas to protest its decision to take part in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections.

Suyuf al-Haq has organized attacks against targets they deem immoral or un-Islamic, such as internet cafes, claiming they blew up more than 50 "morally corrupted" businesses in 2007.{{Cite web |last=al-Mughrabi |first=Nidal |date=9 August 2007 |title=Bombs hit Christian bookshop, Internet cafe in Gaza |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL15426776/ |website=Reuters}}{{Cite web |date=2007-03-02 |title=Islamic Group's Wrath Stokes Fears in Gaza |url=https://laist.com/news/npr-news/islamic-groups-wrath-stokes-fears-in-gaza |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=LAist |language=en}} The group has conducted an acid attack against a young woman dressed "provocatively", attacked a young man listening to music, and threatened Christians. In 2007, the group orchestrated the assassination of senior Palestinian intelligence officer Colonel Jed Tayya, whom it accused of being a Mossad agent. In June 2007, they issued a threat towards Gazan female television broadcasters, warning that they would "cut throats, and from vein to vein, if needed to protect the spirit and moral of this nation", demanding they cease wearing Western-style clothing and makeup. An unnamed Palestinian senior security official accused Hamas of funding the group, which Hamas denied.{{Cite news |date=2007-06-02 |title=Fundamentalists in Gaza threaten to behead 'immodest' women broadcasters |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3407692,00.html |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=Ynetnews |language=en}}{{Cite news |agency=Associated Press |date=2007-06-02 |title=Gaza extremist group threatens to behead female broadcasters |url=https://www.haaretz.com/2007-06-02/ty-article/gaza-extremist-group-threatens-to-behead-female-broadcasters/0000017f-f88f-ddde-abff-fcef82370000 |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=Haaretz |language=en}}

{{visible anchor| Jihadia Salafiya }}is or was a group mainly known for its threats against Christians. Their leader, Abu Saqer, said in 2007 that Hamas "must work to impose an Islamic rule or it will lose the authority it has and the will of the people" and that Christians "must be ready for Islamic rule if they want to live in peace in Gaza". The group demanded as well an end to Christian missionary activity in the Gaza Strip.{{Cite news |last1=Klein |first1=Aaron |last2=WND |date=2007-06-19 |title='Christians must accept Islamic rule' |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3414753,00.html |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=Ynetnews |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Jordá |first=Carmelo |date=1 August 2012 |title=Cristianos de Gaza denuncian conversiones forzosas al islam y dicen que son perseguidos |url=https://www.libertaddigital.com/mundo/2012-08-01/cristianos-de-gaza-denuncian-conversiones-forzosas-al-islam-y-dicen-que-son-perseguidos-1276465207/ |website=Libertad Digital |language=es}}

Jihadia Salafiya was also suspected of attacking a United Nations school in the region which hosted a co-ed sporting event.

{{main| Jund Ansar Allah }}

{{see also| Islamic Emirate of Rafah

| Battle of Rafah (2009) }}

Jund Ansar Allah ("The Army of God's Supporters") was a Rafah-based group that first surfaced in late 2008. In 2009 the group attempted an attack on the formerly existing Karni border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Israel.{{cite web |date=9 June 2009 |title=News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: June 2-9, 2009 |url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/ipc_e035.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090616154549/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/ipc_e035.htm |archive-date=16 June 2009 |access-date=16 August 2009 |work=Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center |df=dmy-all}}{{Cite news |date=2009-08-15 |title=Profile: Jund Ansar Allah |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8203239.stm |access-date=2024-05-02 |language=en-GB}} Jund Ansar Allah militants holed up in a building in Khan Yunis surrendered in a standoff with Hamas police in July 2009.{{cite web |date=22 July 2009 |title=Hamas Police End Standoff With Muslim Extremists |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/hamas-police-end-standoff-with-muslim-extremists |access-date=16 August 2009 |work=Fox News}} Hamas officials also blamed the group for the bombings of several internet cafes, and of a wedding party attended by relatives of the West Bank-based Fatah leader, Mohammed Dahlan, in which fifty people were injured. Jund Ansar Allah denied any responsibility for the latter attack, and Fatah leaders blamed Hamas.{{Cite news |date=2009-08-15 |title=Profile: Jund Ansar Allah |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8203239.stm |access-date=2023-12-29 |language=en-GB}}

In August 2009, Jund Ansar Allah launched a revolt against Hamas, establishing the short-lived "Islamic Emirate of Rafah"; the rebellion was crushed by Hamas after a day of fighting, resulting in the group being virtually destroyed and its leaders killed.{{Cite web |title=Al Qaeda-linked group declares Islamic state in Gaza - The Long War Journal |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/videos/2009/08/post.php |access-date=2019-02-28 |website=www.longwarjournal.org}}{{Cite news |last=Beaumont |first=Peter |date=2009-08-15 |title=Hamas destroys al-Qaida group in violent Gaza battle |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/aug/15/hamas-battle-gaza-islamists-al-qaida |access-date=2019-02-28 |work=The Observer |language=en-GB |issn=0029-7712}} Remnants of the group did however claim responsibility for rocket attacks against Israel in October 2009 and March 2010.

{{Main article| Tawhid al-Jihad (Gaza Strip) }}

{{See also| Vittorio Arrigoni | Sinai insurgency #In the Gaza Strip}}

Jahafil Al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad fi Filastin ("The Armies of Monotheism and Jihad in Palestine") emerged in 2008 and has been responsible for rocket attacks against Israel and attacks against Gazan Christians.{{Cite web |date=2018-03-30 |title=Al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (Gaza) |url=https://ecfr.eu/special/mapping_palestinian_politics/al_tawhid_wal_jihad_gaza/ |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=ECFR |language=en-GB}} The group participated in the Sinai insurgency{{Cite web |last=Fisher |first=Gabe |date=24 September 2012 |title=Egypt sentences 14 to death for 2011 Sinai attacks |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/egypt-sentences-14-to-death-for-2011-sinai-attacks/ |website=The Times of Israel}} alongside the Army of Islam and the Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem. Notably, it kidnapped and murdered Vittorio Arrigoni, an Italian peace activist who supported the Palestinian cause, in April 2011. The group said that if their imprisoned leader Hesham al-Sa'eedni was not released by Hamas, they would execute Arrigoni. However, he was found dead well before the deadline; Hamas stormed the house where he was being held and successfully fought the abductors, but found him hanged.{{Cite news |last=Akram |first=Fares |date=2011-04-14 |title=Hamas Says It Found Body of Italian Activist |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/world/middleeast/15gaza.html |access-date=2024-05-02 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} The Los Angeles Times commented:

[T]he kidnapping raised questions about Hamas' control over Gaza, and it represents the latest example of how smaller, more radical groups in the territory—some with alleged ties to Al Qaeda—are challenging the rule of Hamas, which itself is viewed by Israel and the United States as a terrorist organization. Those groups complain that Hamas has become too moderate.{{Cite web |date=2011-04-15 |title=GAZA STRIP: Kidnapped Italian activist found dead; Hamas condemns rival radical group |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/babylon-beyond/story/2011-04-14/gaza-strip-kidnapped-italian-activist-found-dead-hamas-condemns-rival-radical-group |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}

Kataeb al-Tawhid ("the Monotheism Brigades") is the militant wing of Liwa al-Tawhid.{{cite news| title = Renewed conflict between Hamas and Al-Qaeda supporters in Gaza: Liwa al-Tawhid in Gaza flirts with "Wilayat Sinai" and ISIS and challenges Hamas' influence | url = https://ara.tv/8z4w5 | date= 20 May 2020 }} They were a group that emerged in 2009. It claimed a cadre of several hundred fighters and an expertise in “RPG rockets, kalashnikovs, explosive devices, and mines, but we are trained in everything, including martyrdom.” “Liwa al-Tawhid” is an extension of the “al-Tawhid and wal-Jihad Brigades” and “Jund Ansar Allah”.

{{main| Jaljalat }}

Jaljalat ("Thunder") is or was a "loosely-structured" group aligned with Al-Qaeda and composed largely of former Hamas personnel. The group voiced its condemnation of Hamas and organized two bombing attacks against Hamas government buildings in August 2009 as revenge against the suppression of Jund Ansar Allah earlier that month.{{cite web |last=Abu Toameh |first=Khaled |date=7 September 2009 |title=We tried to kill Carter and Blair |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1251804504684&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110124133534/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1251804504684 |archive-date=24 January 2011 |accessdate=8 September 2009 |work=The Jerusalem Post}} In September 2009, Jaljalat revealed that it had attempted to assassinated former US president Jimmy Carter and former UK prime minister Tony Blair, but the plot had been foiled by Hamas. Hamas captured the group's leader, Mahmoud Taleb, in October 2009.{{cite web |date=October 12, 2009 |title=Hamas captures commander of pro-Al Qaida militia |url=http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2009/me_hamas0797_10_12.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091015055050/http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2009/me_hamas0797_10_12.asp |archive-date=2009-10-15 |publisher=World Tribune}}

{{Main article| Sheikh Omar Hadid Brigade }}

The Sheikh Omar Hadid Brigade surfaced in 2015 and is affiliated with the (so called) Islamic State.{{Cite news |date=June 9, 2014 |title=ISIS: We Are Operating in Gaza |url=http://www.vocativ.com/world/israel-world/isis-operating-gaza/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816061921/https://www.vocativ.com/world/israel-world/isis-operating-gaza/ |archive-date=August 16, 2021 |access-date=June 2, 2015 |work=Vocative: The extremist terror organization is establishing a toehold inside Gaza, despite Hamas' claims to the contrary}} The group was responsible for the Askhelon rocket attacks into Israel that year. Hamas raided the home of their leader Yunis Hunnar in June 2015; he was shot dead while resisting arrest.{{Cite news |last=Yashar |first=Ari |date=June 2, 2015 |title=Hamas Kills Local ISIS Leader in Gaza Shootout |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/196185#.VXlSJvlVhBc |access-date=June 11, 2015 |work=ArutzSheva7: Round 1? Salafist leader killed after violently resisting arrest for 'illegal activities,' as ISIS threat looks likely to come to fruition}}

{{Main article| Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem }}

The Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem was formed in 2011 or 2012 by Hisham Al-Saedni{{cite web |date=14 October 2012 |title=Mujahideen Shura Council is consolidation of Salafi-Jihadist groups in Gaza: sources |url=http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/10/mujahideen_shura_cou.php |accessdate=27 July 2015 |work=The Long War Journal}} and is linked to both Al-QaedaThomas Joscelyn, [http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/06/al_qaeda-linked_grou.php Al Qaeda-linked group claims responsibility for attack in Israel], Long War Journal (Foundation for the Defense of Democracies) 19-06-2012 and the Islamic State.{{cite web |date=27 February 2014 |title=Gaza Salafists pledge allegiance to ISIS – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East |url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/tr/originals/2014/02/isis-gaza-salafist-jihadist-qaeda-hamas.html |accessdate=25 September 2014 |work=Al-Monitor}} It has carried out attacks against Israel and participated in the Sinai insurgency{{Cite web |last=Roggio |first=Bill |date=2012-08-06 |title=Mujahideen Shura Council denies involvement in Sinai assault {{!}} FDD's Long War Journal |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/08/mujahideen_shura_council_denie.php |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=www.longwarjournal.org |language=en-US}} with the Army of Islam and Al-Tawhid wal-Jihad. Hamas initiated a crackdown on the group in July 2013.[http://www.longwarjournal.org/threat-matrix/archives/2013/07/popular_resistance_committees.php Popular Resistance Committees calls on Hamas to stop arrests of 'mujahideen'] July 22, 2013

The Lions of Monotheism was a group that firebombed five Christian churches in September 2006 in response to the controversy over Pope Benedict XVI's comments on Islam. While one of the church attacks occurred in the Gaza Strip, the other four were carried out in Nablus, in the West Bank. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was at that time prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, condemned the attacks.[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/763199.html "Report: Rome tightens pope's security after fury over Islam remarks"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201182506/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/763199.html|date=1 December 2008}}, Haaretz, 16 September 2006{{cite news |last=Fisher |first=Ian |date=17 September 2006 |title=Pope Apologizes for Remarks About Islam |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/world/europe/17cnd-pope.html?ex=1316145600&en=bd45a56d2f9e575a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181208140509/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/world/europe/17cnd-pope.html?ex=1316145600&en=bd45a56d2f9e575a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss |archive-date=8 December 2018 |access-date=2010-05-21 |newspaper=The New York Times}}

The Free of the Homeland was a group which attacked and vandalized a children's summer camp run by the United Nations in May 2010. It accused the organization of promoting immorality in the Gaza Strip. Hamas condemned the attack.{{Cite web |last=al-Mughrab |first=Nidal |date=23 May 2010 |title=Militants attack U.N. Gaza summer camp |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64M0RT20100523/ |website=Reuters}}

{{Main article|Masada al-Mujahideen}}

Masada al-Mujahideen was a group associated with Al-Qaeda{{Cite web |title=Masada al Mujahideen |url=https://trackingterrorism.org/group/masada-al-mujahideen/ |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=TRAC |language=en-US}} which was notable for its focus on starting forest fires with arson attacks. It clashed with Israel, Hamas, and even Jaysh al-Ummah in the early 2010s.{{Cite web |date=22 July 2011 |title=Masada al-Mujahideen Video of Rocket Attack on Sderot |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Jihadist-News/site-intel-group-11-17-09-mmp-video-rocket-sderot.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=SITE Enterprise |language=en-gb}}{{Cite journal |last=Farrall |first=Leah |date=2017 |title=Revisiting al-Qaida's Foundation and Early History |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26295954 |journal=Perspectives on Terrorism |volume=11 |issue=6 |pages=17–37 |issn=2334-3745 |jstor=26295954}}{{Cite news |date=5 August 2011 |title=Masada al-Mujahideen Condemns Hamas' Treatment of Prisoners |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Jihadist-News/site-intel-group-3-23-11-mmp-hamas-prisons.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |work=SITE Enterprise |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |date=22 July 2011 |title=Army of the Ummah Takes Issue with Palestinian Faction |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Jihadist-News/site-intel-group-12-10-09-ju-issue-with-mmp.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=SITE Enterprise |language=en-gb}} It claimed responsibility for more than a dozen forest fires inside Israeli territory between 2010 and 2013.{{Cite web |last=Algemeiner |first=The |date=2013-07-11 |title=Arizona Officials 'Unequivocally' Reject Palestinian Jihadist Group's Claim of Responsibility for Wildfires - Algemeiner.com |url=https://www.algemeiner.com/2013/07/11/arizona-officials-unequivocally-reject-palestinian-jihadist-groups-claim-of-responsibility-for-wildfires/ |access-date=2024-08-08 |website=www.algemeiner.com |language=en-US}} The group even went so far as to claim they were behind forest fires in the United States in 2012 and 2013, namely in the states of Arizona and Nevada, but their claims were disproven by American officials.{{Cite web |date=8 February 2012 |title=Palestinian Militant Faction Claims Nevada Forest Fire |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Jihadist-News/site-intel-group-1-21-12-mmp-nevada-forest-fire.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=SITE Enterprise |language=en-gb}}{{Cite web |date=3 July 2013 |title=Palestinian jihadist group claims credit for Arizona wildfire |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/07/masadat_al_mujahideen_claims_c.php |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=FDD's Long War Journal |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=12 July 2013 |title=Arizona Officials 'Unequivocally' Reject Palestinian Jihadist Group's Claim of Responsibility for Wildfires |url=http://www.5tjt.com/arizona-officials-unequivocally-reject-palestinian-jihadist-groups-claim-of-responsibility-for-wildfires/ |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=The 5 Towns Jewish Times |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=3 July 2013 |title=Palestinian Militant Group Gives Dubious Claim for Arizona Wildfire |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Jihadist-News/palestinian-militant-group-gives-dubious-claim-for-arizona-wildfire.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=SITE Enterprise |language=en-gb}}

• Islamism in the Gaza Strip
• The Sinai insurgency in the Gaza Strip
• Fatah–Hamas conflict
• Islamic fundamentalism
• Palestinian Joint Operations Room

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

{{improve categories|date=July 2024}}

Category:Islamist groups

Category:Hamas

Category:Gaza Strip

Category:Salafi Islamist groups

Category:Sinai insurgency

Category:Islamism in Palestine

Category:Palestinian Islamists