“We are part of this battle, and our fighters stand shoulder to shoulder with their brothers in the Al-Qassam Brigades (the military wing of Hamas) until victory,” Abu Hamza, spokesman for the Al-Quds Brigades, (the military branch of the Islamic Jihad), said in a statement.
The Al-Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades, of the Popular Resistance Movement, spoke out in similar terms. “United in a trench on this glorious day of our people,” the group said.
The National Resistance Brigades also announced that their troops joined the operation launched by Hamas on Saturday morning, including the launching of thousands of rockets and a ground incursion into Israeli territory.
The Lions’ Den, one of the most active militias in the West Bank, called on its members on Saturday to a total mobilization and “attack immediately in all places on the occupation forces and their settlers. (…) Our lone wolves must act immediately and urgently. All combatants must close ranks and go out to attack,” the armed group stated.
The Israel Armed Forces (IDF) announced fighting in at least 21 sites in the south of the country, although its spokesman, General Daniel Hagari, reduced the number to seven shortly afterwards: Kfar Gaza, Sderot, Sufa, the Zikim base, Nahal Oz, Bari, Magen and Camp Reim. Hagari added that “so far 2,200 (rockets) have been launched on Israel.”
However, the commander of the Al-Qassam Brigades, Muhammad Al-Deif, raised the number of rockets launched by Hamas to 5,000 when he announced the offensive.
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