Palestinian Joint Operations Room

The Palestinian Joint Operations Room (Arabic: غرفة العمليات المشتركة, romanized: Ghurfat al-ʿAmaliyyāt al-Mushtaraka), also known by its full name Joint Room for Palestinian Resistance Factions (Arabic: الغرفة المشتركة لفصائل المقاومة الفلسطينية, romanized: al-Ghurfa al-Mushtaraka li-Faṣāʾil al-Muqāwama al-Filasṭīniyya), is a united front for the military wings of the Palestinian armed factions. It includes armed groups from various backgrounds, and ideologies from both the right and the left, including Islamists, socialists, nationalists, and others.^[4]

Joint Operations Room
غرفة العمليات المشتركة لفصائل المقاومة الفلسطينية
Leaders	Mohammed Deif X (Hamas) Khalil Bathani (Palestinian Islamic Jihad) Jamil Mezher (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine) Nayef Hawatmeh (Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine) Ayman al-Shashniya (Popular Resistance Committees) Talal Naji (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command) others
Dates of operation	23 July 2018 (6 years ago) (2018-07-23)[1]
Group(s)	Al-Qassam Brigades  Al-Quds Brigades  Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades  National Resistance Brigades  Jihad Jibril Brigades  Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades  Al-Nasser Salah al-Deen Brigades Other similar militant groups
Ideology	shared ideologies United front Palestinianism Palestinian nationalism Palestinian self-determination Palestinian armed struggle Anti-Zionism Anti-imperialism
Part of	Axis of Resistance[2][3]
Opponents	Israel
Battles and wars	Israeli–Palestinian conflict 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis Israel–Hamas war 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip (2023–present)

The Joint Operations Room is managed from the Gaza Strip, but forms a single battlefront against Israel from wherever Palestinian militant forces are located, without being confined to a specific geographic area.^[5]

Background

It was formed for the first time in 2006 in order to unite against Israel during clashes and wars and included Hamas and the Islamic Jihad Movement, but it fell into obscurity. It was then developed, expanded, and was formed under its current name on July 23, 2018, among 12 military wings after clashes around Al-Aqsa Mosque, the most prominent of which was the installation of electronic gates there by Israel, in what is considered Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem.^[1] It currently consists of 12 different armed groups, and has coordinated a large number of attacks on Israel including the October 7 attacks,^[6] and has also coordinated defence and retaliations against Israeli attacks.^[7][8] Ayman Nofal in May 2023 explained the goals and organization of the room, which he said was to create an inter-organizational alliance to coordinate operations, and increase the potential of the "Palestinian Resistance", and for it to "become a comprehensive framework for all the organizations, networks and fighters, without exception".^[9] He also gave a list of the 9 factions out of 12 which he said were "fully unified under the room".^[7]

Members

•  al-Qassam Brigades: Hamas^{[7][10][8][11]}
•  Al-Quds Brigades: Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)^{[7][10][8][11]}
•  Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades: Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)^[7][10][11]
•  National Resistance Brigades: Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP)^[7][10][11]
•  Al-Nasser Salah al-Deen Brigades: Popular Resistance Committees (PRC)^[7][10][11]
• Mujahideen Brigades: (Palestinian Mujahideen Movement)^[7][10][11]
•  Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades (ex-Fatah, no longer aligned with it)^[7][10][11]
•  Jihad Jibril Brigades: (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command (PFLP-GC)^[7][10]
• Al-Ansar Brigades (Palestinian Freedom Movement)^[7][10][11]

Ex-Fatah groups not mentioned by Nofal:^[7]

• Ayman Jawda Squads^[7][10]
• Abd al-Qadr al-Husseini Brigades^[7][10]
• Al-Assefa Army^[7][10]

See also

• Palestine Liberation Organization
• Rejectionist Front
• Unified National Leadership of the Uprising
• Alliance of Palestinian Forces
• Palestinian National and Islamic Forces

References

1. "غرفة العمليات المشتركة.. "قيادة أركان المقاومة" في غزة". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-10-31.
2. Drums Of War: Israel And The "AXIS OF RESISTANCE" (PDF), International Crisis Group, 2 August 2010, archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04
3. Al-Kassab, Fatima (26 October 2023). "What is the 'axis of resistance' of Iran-backed groups in the Middle East?". NPR. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
4. Tollast, Robert; Oweis, Khaled Yacoub (2023-11-15). "Who are Hamas's allies in Gaza? From Islamic Jihad to Marxist militants". The National. Retrieved 2023-12-17.
5. "Hamas' October Attacks and the Israeli War on Gaza: Reflections from Palestinians". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved 2024-10-03. All Palestinian armed factions now work within a joint operations room managed in Gaza, forming a single battlefront against Israel from wherever Palestinian resistance forces are located, without being confined to a specific geographic area.
6. "How Hamas built a force to attack Israel on 7 October". BBC. 2023-11-27. Retrieved 2023-11-29.
7. "Hamas terrorist Ayman Nofal explains the workings of the Palestinian organizations' joint operations room in the Gaza Strip". Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center. 2023-10-31. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
8. "What is Hamas? A simple guide to the armed Palestinian group". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
9. Palestine Chronicle Staff (2023-06-12). "Joint Room and 'Unity of the Squares': What Will the Next Israeli War on Gaza Look Like". The Palestine Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
10. موسى, رائد. "برا وبحرا وجوا.. المقاومة تنفذ أكبر مناورة عسكرية في غزة". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-10-31.
11. Inbari, Pinhas (2018-11-15). "A "Joint Operations Room" in Gaza – the New Factor in the Balance of Power in Gaza". Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. Retrieved 2023-10-31.