WATCH: Palestinian factions hold joint drill on disengagement anniversary
Hamas-affiliated media linked the timing of the exercise to rising tensions surrounding the status of Palestinian prisoners.
Palestinian terrorist factions in the Gaza Strip held their annual "Strong Pillar" joint exercise on Tuesday morning, coinciding with the anniversary of Israel's 2005 disengagement from the Strip.
Video from the drill showed a barrage of rockets being fired from the coast of the Strip toward the Mediterranean Sea, as well as naval and ground forces operating near the coast and at training complexes.
The video also showed operatives from the factions in scuba gear off the coast of Gaza.
This was the fourth time the factions have held their "Strong Pillar" joint exercise, although the drill was held in December in past years.
On Monday, the leadership of the Joint Chamber of Palestinian Factions toured sites belonging to the factions near the border with Israel.
Timing of exercise linked to Ben-Gvir's policies concerning prisoners
The Hamas-affiliated Shehab News Agency published an article citing Palestinian analysts linking the earlier timing of the exercise to planned visits by Jews to the Temple Mount on Rosh Hashanah and Ben-Gvir's policies concerning Palestinian prisoners.
One of the analysts warned that "these crimes will not go unnoticed, because the Palestinian resistance will be present in the field to teach the enemy a lesson that he will never forget."
The commander-in-chief of Hamas's Al-Qassam Brigades, Muhammad al-Deif, published a statement on Tuesday to mark the anniversary of Israel's disengagement from Gaza, warning "the defeat of the occupation from Gaza lays the foundation for its defeat from the West Bank and heralds the liberation of Jaffa, Haifa, Jerusalem, and the rest of the country."
Deif has been repeatedly targeted by Israel, including in Operation Guardian of the Walls in 2021, and his wife, son, and daughter were killed in a strike in 2014. Deif has lost both his legs, an arm, and an eye. The al-Qassam commander is often referenced in chants by Palestinians calling for the involvement of factions in Gaza in various conflicts.
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