The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) called on all Palestinians to take up arms and “expand” the conflict against Israel in all occupied territories of Palestine, The New Arab reports.

Following a large-scale military drill dubbed ‘Loyalty to the Revolutionary West Bank’ by PIJ militants in Gaza, spokesperson Abu Hamza called for unity among Palestinians across the occupied territories – both in the West Bank and in the 1948 territories – and mobilization against Israel for what he described as an “intifada that will create the basis for the end of [Israel] and its expulsion from all of Palestine”:

“We call on all the fighters among our people and the free people in the West Bank and in Israel to mobilize for this war, so that there will be an overall intifada that will create the basis for the end of our enemy and its expulsion from all of Palestine.”

During a conference on 12 March, senior PIJ official Khaled al-Batsh said that “the situation in the West Bank is similar to the situation before the occupation’s withdrawal from Gaza.”

“The occupation cannot resist its defeat, so we have the power to force it to leave our lands. We must unify our efforts to fight one of the most dangerous colonial states in the world,” he added.

In addition, the senior official called on Fatah and Hamas to unite with the PIJ against Israel.

Last year in December, the Lions’ Den also called for unity among the Palestinian resistance factions during an armed parade in the Askar refugee camp in Nablus, West Bank, to commemorate the group’s fallen leaders Ibrahim al-Nabulsi and Tamer al-Kilani.

The group was formed independently in August 2022 and rose to prominence following successful attacks against Israeli military and settler targets in the occupied West Bank, particularly Nablus, which has been the scene of increased Israeli military activity in recent months.

According to The Jerusalem Post, the founders of the Lions’ Den have established contact with Gaza-based resistance factions and their representatives in the West Bank.

On 23 February, the Israeli military launched an aggressive raid in the West Bank city of Nablus, killing 11 Palestinians and injuring 102. The UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, condemned the attack and criticized Israel for the use of “explosive projectiles.”

However, the Israeli attack was met with a counter-shooting operation on highway 60 near Huwara, Nablus, where a Palestinian man shot and killed two Israeli settlers with an M-16 rifle.

In response, Israeli settlers launched an attack against Palestinians in Huwara, attacking people with knives and guns. It was also reported that the settlers set fire to two Palestinian homes in the same area.

On 6 March, settlers under the protection of the Israeli army stormed Huwara south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus – firing live ammunition at Palestinians, throwing stones, and vandalizing vehicles in the second rampage on the town in a span of ten days.