Palestine and Israel in 2023

2022 was an interesting year for Palestinian / Israeli tensions and one can only wonder what 2023 will bring. In this short article I want to highlight the emergence of two Palestinian organisations to watch in 2023.

The Jenin Brigades, it is thought was originally formed by amil Al-Amouri, a militant of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) with fighters coming from other military wings such as the the Al-Quds Brigades, Izz al-Din Qassam Brigades and Fatah’s al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades. However, it has since developed into an independant, self-functioning unit, with political ideology put aside to focus on defending the Jenin refugee camp.

The civilian populace in the Jenin refugee camp supports and accepts the actions of the Battalion members. Numerous press releases have emphasised that the Israeli security forces have no countermeasures for the Battalion despite their limited capabilities and an unbalanced power structure.

Secondly, the Lions Den is a Palestinian armed group located in the region of Nablus that emerged following the death of a prominent militant figure in 2022 killed by Israeli Security Forces. According to Israeli intelligence, Adham al-Shishani, Mohammad al-Dakhil, Ashraf Mubaslat, and Ibrahim al-Nabulsi co-founded Lion's Den and all 4 have since been killed by Israeli Security Forces. Nevertheless, The Lions Den is gaining the popularity for its attacks against Israeli settlements, security forces and check points since its inception last year.

Members of the The Lions Den are believed to have ties to Hamas, Fatah and the PIJ, however, state that they are an independant, non partisan group that does not align with any faction or political agenda and focussed solely on fighting the Israeli occupation with many attacks on Israeli Forces in the latter 2022 including the killing of an Israeli soldier in the Deir Sharaf area, west of Nablus on 11 October 2022.