Above Ground: What Does Gaza Resistance Look Like

October 30, 2023

By Palestine Chronicle Staff

Palestine Chronicle correspondents have reported on some of the rallies of armed Resistance groups in Gaza in recent months. 

The Palestinian Resistance attack at Israeli targets in southern Israel on October 7, raised major questions, about Israel’s actual military strength, but also about the military readiness of Palestinian Resistance groups. 

In Gaza, there are several armed Resistance groups. The largest in terms of numbers, strength, and military readiness is Al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of the Hamas political movement. 

It is followed by Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). 

The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the armed wing of the socialist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), also commands a military presence in Gaza. 

There are other fighting groups, all operating under the leadership of the Joint Operations Room.

Number of fighters in each movement is not clear, but rough estimates put the numbers of Qassam fighters at 30,000-40,000, PIJ at 12,000, and Abu Ali Mustafa in the thousands.

In their military rallies in Gaza, these groups often display some, though not all of their new technologies. 

Palestine Chronicle correspondents have attended some of these rallies in recent months.