What is Palestinian Islamic Jihad?
The Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine (Ḥarakat al-Jihād al-Islāmī fī Filasṭīn), or Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) as it is more often known, is the second largest armed group in Gaza. It is considered one of the most extreme and uncompromising Palestinian armed factions and operates on the West Bank too. Last week, PIJ were also reported to have attacked Israel from Lebanon. It rejects any political peace process and sees a military victory over Israel as the sole means of attaining its objective of establishing an Islamic state across Israel, the West Bank and Gaza.
