Hamas announced Friday that it has gathered 2,500 new recruits for the creation of a “popular army” in Gaza, in preparation for any future conflict with Israel, according to a report by AFP.
A spokesman for Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military arm, confirmed the news during a speech at the Jabaliya refugee camp. The recruits, he said, would become “the first section of the popular army for the liberation of Al-Aqsa [mosque] and of Palestine.”
The Al-Aqsa Mosque sits on the Temple Mount, and has long been a flashpoint of conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. In 2000, it was a walk on the Temple Mount by former Israeli Prime Minister and then-opposition leader Ariel Sharon which is said to have triggered the Second Intifada.
More recently, Jewish activist Rabbi Yehuda Glick was shot in an assassination attempt for his efforts to secure Jewish access to the holy site, revered by both Muslims and Jews. Access to the Mount was shut down following the shooting, which Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called “a declaration of war”.
Hamas, too, is no stranger to direct conflict with Israel. This past summer, the two sides engaged in an extended conflict, as Hamas lobbed over 4,000 rockets into Israel and Israel responded with airstrikes and ground attacks. 2,140 Palestinians and 72 Israelis lost their lives in the 50-day Operation Protective Edge.
Mohammed Abu Askar, a Hamas official, said those over 20 could enlist “to be prepared for any confrontation” with Israel. He went on to say the army is being formed “at a moment when the Al-Aqsa mosque is subject to serious Israeli violations”.
Hamas called upon Palestinians Friday to “move to save the Aqsa Mosque and defend Jerusalem against the Israeli siege imposed on the city.” The group encouraged Palestinians, especially youth, to rise up against soldiers and settlers in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria. Fellow extremist group Islamic Jihad expressed similar sentiments, calling on Palestinians to take to the streets Friday in a show of support for al-Aqsa.
Another al-Qassam official spoke about rearmament after this summer’s conflict, saying “the people, arms and the tunnels are going well.” Israel destroyed dozens of tunnels from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory during Operation Protective Edge.
