Ziyad al-Nakhala, Islamic Jihad’s Secretary-General, made several disturbing claims in an interview with Al-Wefaq on Saturday. Al-Nakhala said that the Iranian leader called for the PIJ to arm the Arab residents of Judea and Samaria.
“There was a great focus in order for the West Bank to move from a state of coexistence and calm to a state of resistance that we see today, and of course, all of this is under the directives of Ali Khamenei,” al-Nakhala said, explaining the conclusions resulting from his recent meeting with Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei”
“During our last meeting with him in Tehran, he renewed the call for that and for the development of resistance in the West Bank,” Al-Nakhala said, emphasizing that this directive was already underway. “weapons were smuggled into the West Bank, and others were purchased from the Israelis themselves to arm the resistance groups there.”
This Khameini-ordered effort has already begun.
“Actions have been performed, and plans have been consolidated in order to arm the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] and create a change in direction regarding everything connected to the Palestinian situation by means of weapons smuggling or even purchasing weapons from within Israel,” he said. “We provide large and continuous [financial] assistance to the fighters in the field. We also follow up and provide field expertise in the process of manufacturing explosives.”
“We support the resistance. We created battalions of fighters and military organizations in all of the Palestinian cities in the West Bank. Their scope and abilities change from place to place. We have experts in the field to create means of fighting. We are providing great and continuous aid to the fighters on the ground.”
Al-Nakhala predicted that Israel would cease to exist as a result of Iran-backed terrorism.
“We are convinced that one day Israel’s existence will come to an end,” he said. “If we are weak, it could happen in another 100 years maybe, and if we are strong, it could happen maybe within twenty years.”
He explained that some of the armed elements were part of the Palestinian Authority.
“We benefited from opening up to the bases of the Fatah movement, and there are segments that oppose the settlement and the authority and have influence in the West Bank,” al-Nakhala said, referring to the ruling party in the Palestinian Authority. “We decided to open up to these segments, support them, and arm them. Their presence helped extend the state of resistance, and these segments oppose in one way or another the Palestinian Authority, and they have become siding with the resistance, and we strive to help everyone as much as possible.”
“There are those who think that Iran provides hundreds of millions of dollars a month, but I say with the least capabilities, a state of resistance has been created in Palestine, and therefore we must not exaggerate with the aid,” he added. “With the exception of machine guns, missiles, anti-tank weapons, and explosives are manufactured locally. Undoubtedly, we acknowledge that the Islamic Republic has provided assistance to the Palestinian resistance, including expertise, training, and economic aid. There is also humanitarian aid to the families of the martyrs and the families of the prisoners.”
He also stated that the firing of rockets from southern Lebanon about two months ago was also in support of terrorist activities in Judea and Samaria.
During al-Nakhala’s visit, he praised the Iranian government’s support for Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas. At the same time, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh also met both Supreme Leader Khamenei and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. Haniyeh claimed credit for the terrorist attack last month in Eli that claimed the lives of four Jews, adding that it was “just the beginning” of a renewed campaign against Israel. While in Iran, Hamas official Osama Hamdan credited Iran with the creation of 20 to 30 new “battalions” of 2 000 militants in northern Samaria, which aims to spread to central Judea and Samaria.
According to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in April, Iran is the “driving force” of a recent multi-front escalation with Israelis through its proxies across the region, funding Hamas – which rules the Gaza Strip — with $100 million annually with additional funding worth tens of millions of dollars going to the second largest terror group in the Palestinian enclave, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Galant said the regime also provides Hezbollah in Lebanon with $700 million a year, as well as “knowledge and strategic weaponry” such as precision-guided munitions.
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