Saraya Al-Quds

Al-Quds Brigades سرايا القدس
Members of Al-Quds brigades parade through Gaza
Leader	Ziyad al-Nakhalah
Spokesman	Abu Hamza[1]
Dates of operation	1981–present
Motives	The establishment of a sovereign, Islamic Palestinian state within the geographic borders of pre-1948 Mandatory Palestine
Ideology	Palestinian Nationalism
Opponents	State of Israel
Website	https://saraya.ps

Saraya al-Quds (Arabic: سرايا القدس),^[2] approximately meaning Jerusalem Brigades and sometimes translated as "Al-Quds Brigades" (AQB), is the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamist organization Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ),^[3][4] which was founded in 1981 by Fathi Shaqaqi and Abd Al Aziz Awda in Gaza.^[5] It is now, the second largest militant group in the Gaza Strip, after Hamas. Currently the AQB's leader is Ziyad al-Nakhalah, who lives in Beirut, Lebanon.^[6] The head of AQB in the Gaza Strip was Baha Abu al-Ata^[7] until he was killed in a airstrike in November 2019.^[8]

1. ↑ "Al-Quds Brigades: We are ready to expand the circle of fire". www.alquds.com. 11 May 2023.
2. ↑ "Al-Quds Brigades... Learn about the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement سرايا القدس.. تعرف على الجناح العسكري لحركة الجهاد الإسلامي". Al Jazeera Arabic (in Arabic). 18 December 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
3. ↑ Guitta, Olivier. "The Next Dangerous Phase of the Gaza War". Middle East Times. Archived from the original on 16 January 2009. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
4. ↑ "What is the Palestinian Islamic Jihad?". Al Jazeera. 6 August 2022.
5. ↑ "Explained: What Is Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Driving The Recent Israel-Gaza Conflict". IndiaTimes. 18 August 2022.
6. ↑ "Hezbollah leader Nasrallah meets with Palestinian Islamic Jihad". Al-Monitor. 24 August 2022.
7. ↑ Ahronheim, Anna (3 November 2019). "Who is Abu al-Ata: The man behind rocket fire from Gaza Strip". The Jerusalem Post.
8. ↑ Holmes, Oliver (12 November 2019). "Israel strikes on Islamic Jihad chiefs prompt reprisal rocket attacks". The Guardian.