The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Ahead of the 36th anniversary of the organization's founding, the military wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the Al-Quds Brigades (AQB), held a show of force that included, on October 3, a live-ammunition drill simulating a military offensive, and, on October 4, a military parade that was described as "the first of its kind in Palestine and in the history of the resistance." In the parade AQB presented new models of self-manufactured attack and reconnaissance drones. On October 6, the day of the anniversary itself, the PIJ plans to hold a mass rally west of Gaza city and concurrent rallies in Syria and Lebanon.
The following are details about the military drill and the parade, as reported by the PIJ media:
The "live-ammunition military offensive exercise", held under the heading "The Martyrs Herald Victory," involved the PIJ's elite units alongside artillery, rocket, armored and intelligence forces.
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The AQB Telegram channel posted a six-minute video of the drill. In the beginning of the video, head of the PIJ's military department Abu Muhammad Akram Al-'Ajouri is heard giving the signal to start the drill, and footage is shown of what appears to be the drill's command center, as well as footage of rockets being fired.
In the next part of the video, fighters simulate storming an enemy position, penetrating it and capturing it, using various vehicles and weapons, including mortars, machineguns, RPGs, personal firearms and grenades. The fighters are also seen using a tunnel, practicing urban warfare and overtaking an enemy tank.
The AQB parade set out from Gaza city and proceeded towards the town of Al-Zahra (formerly the Israeli settlement Netzarim). It involved thousands of fighters from over 60 brigades belonging to all the PIJ's branches, including the armored, rocket and maritime forces, and various elite units. The new self-manufactured drones showcased in the parade were the Sahab attack and reconnaissance drone, the Sayyad attack drone and the Hudhud photography and reconnaissance drone. These join the Jenin attack drone, which was unveiled by the PIJ in April 2022.
The parade also featured a recorded address by PIJ Commander Al-'Ajouri, who congratulated the movement and its leaders, and stressed that "our enemies wanted the Deal of the Century for Palestine and its people, whereas we wanted the Sword of Jerusalem [the Palestinian name of the round of fighting between Israel and Gaza in May 2021]. They wanted normalization in order to marginalize and isolate us and eliminate our cause, but we wanted the unity the fronts. Yes, the unity of the fronts… Our enemies plan, plot and conspire against us, while we plan and prepare, and we shall strike on all fronts."
