Gaza -
Member of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, Khaled Al-Batsh, affirmed the strength of the relationship that links his movement with Iran and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), as they are considered essential partners in the project of resistance against the Israeli occupation.
Al-Batsh said in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net that Iran is the largest supporter of the Islamic Jihad movement and the Palestinian resistance, but it is higher than interfering in the affairs of the resistance, and the movement's decision remains a Palestinian national par excellence, and we fight our battles with the occupier according to our exclusive Palestinian vision.
Regarding the role of Hamas in the recent confrontation, which the Islamic Jihad called “the unity of the squares,” Al-Batsh said that Hamas supported the confrontation with the occupier politically, in the media and logistically, and played an important role in securing the home front, and the enemy realizes that “we, the resistance factions, complement each other.”
The following is the text of the interview:
You called the process of confronting the latest Israeli aggression "the unity of the squares", what does that mean?
Did you achieve what you wanted?
Salute to Al Jazeera Net and Al Jazeera Media Network for the effort it made in covering the Zionist aggression against our people in Gaza.
This label came as an extension of the Battle of Al-Quds sword, and it is one of its manifestations, where we felt after the Al-Quds sword that the Palestinian people and its components in its various arenas in the West Bank, Jerusalem, inside and in the diaspora, and with us the masses of the nation, are fighting under one title, which is the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque Mosque, and one of the manifestations of that battle was a realization Unity of the squares and intensification of support for the resistance in Gaza.
Therefore, the recent confrontation of the "unity of the squares" came as a continuation of the battle of the sword of Jerusalem, which is a clear message of the resistance's adherence to the unity of the Palestinian people, and the boycott of the resistance's guns in all squares on the land of Palestine in the face of the Zionist enemy.
And when you observe the response of the Zionist community to this tour, and when 58 settlements are struck inside occupied Palestine, and the rockets of the resistance resound in enemy cities, and when the missiles reach Ben Gurion Airport without being detected by the Iron Dome, and when the enemy takes a decision to evacuate all its settlers from the Gaza envelope, and begins by requesting a halt The shooting, these are all indications that the tour is in the right direction, and that we have achieved our goals by deterring the enemy after the assassination of (the commander of the northern region in Saraya al-Quds, the military arm of the Islamic Jihad movement), Tayseer al-Jabari, and (commander of the southern region in the Saraya) Khaled Mansour and his companions, and confirming our positions. Our principles, bearing the cost of jihad and resistance, and consolidating the concept that the road to Jerusalem and return does not pass through negotiations and normalization.
Rockets of the resistance heading from Gaza to Israeli cities and towns as part of the battle of unity of squares launched by the Islamic Jihad Movement (Anatolia)
What are the gains and losses of Islamic Jihad from this round?
In the path of liberation, losses are not measured in one or two rounds, and it is not a statistical arithmetic process measured by the number of martyrs here, the number of dead by the enemy, and the destruction here or there, but rather a cumulative process that ultimately leads to forcing the occupation to leave.. We resist on the basis of inflicting damage and losses on the enemy until His occupation of us is not comfortable and free, and therefore we gained the trust of our people first, and we gained our principles and morals, and that we are still on the axis of light and fire, and we have not made concessions in the smallest details.
We have also won the sympathy of the peoples of the Ummah, and the people’s appreciation that jihad leads this confrontation with all strength and courage, and with capabilities that the enemy did not expect from the jihad movement, and this gives confidence to all the resistance forces, and establishes a culture that if jihad fought this battle with the enemy with such strength, what would we do if It was a major battle fought by regular armies, this fragile entity would not hold out.
How do you respond to the accusations of some of you of engaging in an unequal confrontation at a time set by the enemy?
We have never claimed that we have equal power with the enemy, we are a people under occupation and we seek to expel it by all means, and we seek to make a difference in the force of deterrence. The difference in the balance of power is great between us and the enemy in his favour, and all we wish for the nation is that the right moment comes to bring about a change in the balance of power that serves the battle to liberate Palestine.
Regarding timing, we are not a state or an army to fight battles with strategies that we put on one side, and sometimes developments in the field force you to engage in confrontations, the conditions of the field are often not subject to calculations and timing, and we announced the alert at the beginning to pressure to save the life of the prisoner Khalil Awawda, and in response to the news of the assassination of Sheikh Bassam Al-Saadi , but we did not fire a single shot, until Israel assassinated the leader, Jabari, and thus the confrontation broke out.
What are the limits of your relationship with Iran?
And the extent of its impact on your Palestinian national decision?
Brother Abu Tariq (Secretary General of the Islamic Jihad Movement Ziyad al-Nakhala) had an invitation to visit Iran before the latest developments, and before the outbreak of the battle, he had a meeting with Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi. From Iran or others in our decisions, and our decision is a Palestinian national par excellence, we fight battles according to our vision, and we call on the nation to follow Iran’s example in our support, and to support the resistance with money, weapons and expertise while we kiss their heads, but criticism and accusations are not acceptable, and Iran supports us with money, weapons, training and politics and what it does not offer The whole nation is against the Palestinian resistance, and therefore it is not acceptable to accuse us of Iranian directives. This is not true, and Iran is higher than that. It supports us openly, and we do not accept questioning our patriotism, and we do not wait for someone to tell us when and how to fight Israel.Despite all of that, we salute the Arab and Islamic peoples, for they are our popular advocate, and we are an extension of them and the spearhead of the nation in the face of the Zionist enemy.
Khaled Al-Batsh: The battle is the battle of the Palestinian people, not the battle of the Jihad movement alone (Al-Jazeera)
The resistance received a painful loss with the assassination of two leaders in Jaham al-Jabari and Mansour. How will this affect the military performance of Saraya al-Quds in the next stage?
We are a national movement with an Islamic reference, and Al-Jabari, Mansour and the martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi in the West Bank are the leaders of the resistance of the Palestinian people, and they are an extension of all the martyrs leaders of the forces of our people. However, we believe in the slogan that the leader will be succeeded by a thousand leaders, and a new leader will carry the banner after him.
What are the chances that you will engage in a new confrontation if Israel decides to keep al-Saadi in prison, or something bad happens to the hunger striker, Khalil Awawda?
Jihad Since the beginning of the events, it received news from Jenin from the vicinity of Sheikh Bassam that the occupation shot him in the stomach, and therefore immediately considered Jihad as an Israeli decision to assassinate the Sheikh, so Saraya al-Quds declared a mobilization in response to the news of the assassination, and hours later the Egyptian side contacted us and told us that Israel had contacted him And that Sheikh Bassam was not injured and showed us pictures from the Israeli side, and we made sure of his safety, and after that we contacted again with the Egyptians and asked to intervene to save the life of the prisoner, Awadeh, because there was an Israeli decision to kill him and to end the file of the administrative detainees’ strike, as we found it an opportunity to save his life, and the Egyptian mediator intervened through two-day dialogues To end the alert and end Khalil’s suffering, and on Friday morning (hours before the start of the aggression) we agreed to end the alert in exchange for Egyptian guarantees to end Awawdeh’s suffering, but what happened was that Israel, at the last moment, went towards turning the matter into an internal electoral file through its assassination of Jabari, which was Heading from place to place with a goalEnding the alert, and thus the confrontation occurred in response to his assassination, and not in response to the arrest of Sheikh Bassam.
What are the limits of Hamas' participation in the recent confrontation with Israel?
The battle is the battle of the Palestinian people, and it is not the battle of jihad alone. In our struggle with the occupier, we are racing in the field of jihad and resistance, and in the case of a benign competition with the forces of resistance, and Hamas in this round provided what strengthens our steadfastness and the strength of the resistance. But it can be confirmed that Hamas supported us in the media and politically in protecting the resistance, and at the level of the popular incubator, and provided logistical support, and played an important role in securing the home front and the resistance front, a role that we cannot neglect, and therefore matters are not measured by a moment, and the historical course of the relationship with Hamas Steady path, the enemy knows we complement each other.
Hamas has always emphasized the strength of its relationship with you. From your side, how would you describe this relationship?
The aggression on Gaza had 3 declared Israeli goals, namely: separating the squares, meaning that every Palestinian region is fighting for itself and self-medicating, driving wedges between Hamas and Jihad, and competing in the Israeli elections file.
Question: Are we going to get them what they wanted?
Every sane and patriot must protect the relationship between the two movements, and not contribute to driving wedges and causing a rift in this relationship.
Apart from the recent confrontation, you agree with Hamas on many issues. What prevents the merger and unity between the two movements?
The relationship with Hamas and the resistance must remain strategic, no matter how flawed it may be at certain stations. What we have in common is very great, and this relationship must be protected and every defect that strikes it must be addressed first. With all humility, I say that Saraya al-Quds and Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (the military arm of the movement Hamas) are the backbone of the resistance project in Palestine, and we will not allow the compass to deviate.. It must be emphasized that the relationship with Hamas has improved dozens of times forward than it was in the past. With the occupation, we will not allow to be drawn into plans to sow discord and drive wedges between the components of the Palestinian people.
Some question the effectiveness of the "joint operations room of the resistance." What is your position on the room in light of the recent escalation?
The occupation aims to destroy the common denominators between the resistance forces, and one of its titles is the operations room, and we adhere to it, and we still consider it a tool that brings together forces and that it is one of the manifestations of the resistance action on the land of Palestine. Regardless of positive or negative comments on its performance, we have a decision to strengthen national commonalities, and the joint operations room must be protected.
The view of the Operations Room at the beginning of its establishment was that it was the nucleus of the Resistance Staff Committee. How do you evaluate this experience after 4 years of establishment?
If something goes wrong in a house, we do not demolish the house, but rather fix it, and I do not see that the room can be dispensed with, but it must be preserved and protected and its role enhanced, and if some record poor performance at one point, it has a major role in the rest of the moments. Commonalities and the promotion of joint national action, and the chamber is one of the manifestations of national unity among the arms of the resistance, and it must be upgraded to become a staff, which is left to the military leaders.
Khaled Al-Batsh: The joint operations room is one of the manifestations of national unity between the arms of the resistance and must be elevated to the Staff (Al-Jazeera)
How do you evaluate the performance of Saraya al-Quds and the resistance in the last confrontation?
The enemy is the one who started the killing, and is responsible for all the waterfall of blood, and for every cry of a child in Gaza. The occupation launched 190 raids during the hours of the aggression, and everyone should not forget that Israel uses the Iron Dome and the laser system to direct missiles towards the Gaza Strip, and deliberately launches them towards the Gaza Strip. Gaza and not upwards to shoot down the resistance's rockets, and the rockets of this system fell on residential homes and near civilian facilities, and the enemy's goal is to strike the popular incubator of the resistance.
What are the chances of expansion and development of the resistance in the West Bank?
One of the enemy’s goals in its recent aggression is to cut the jihad movement in the West Bank by directing a preemptive strike that it occupies itself, and to cut off Al-Jabari and Mansour’s communication with the Saraya Al-Quds Brigades in the West Bank, which began to grow since the formation of the first battalion in Jenin camp, which instilled hope in the hearts of the people.
The West Bank must return to its role as the heart of the national project and the protector of Jerusalem. Her role, and her self-occupation with uncontrolled weapons and clan disputes, and in return, our job is to participate in the national community and to redirect weapons in the West Bank, and it is able to lead the confrontation with the occupier from point zero.