This past Monday, Palestinian terrorist groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas met before the Red Cross headquarters in Gaza to solidify support of a Jerusalem Intifada “being achieved by all means possible” in response to the issue of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

“Hammad al-Raqeb, the spokesman of Hamas, said that resistance is the only way to regain all of the Palestinian land and to free Palestinian captives.

For his part, the Islamic Jihad leader and head of Muhjat al-Quds foundation Yasser Saleh revealed that 7,000 prisoners are languishing in Israeli jails including 1,600 patients with 25 of them suffering from cancer, 700 held under illegal administrative detention and 67 female captives.”

Their appeal to the condition of prisoners in Israeli jails is hardly convincing, especially from Hamas who deliberately uses Palestinian citizens as human shields. Ironically, terrorist organizations such as Hamas use charity and community service as ploys to garner support and legitimacy.

So why are these rival Palestinian factions uniting? This should come as no surprise considering the commonalities between the groups: branches of the Muslim Brotherhood, adherents to Sunni Islam, influenced by Iran, committed to Israel’s eradication and spreading Islamic law throughout the Levant. Haaretz notes,

“The two groups have joined forces on numerous occasions, one of the most notable being the bloody suicide bombing at the Beit Lid Junction in Israel in 1995, in which eight Israelis were killed and more than 50 others wounded.”

One can speculate that Hamas was the initiator of the recent talks due their size and influence relative to Islamic Jihad. AhluBayt News Agency also sheds light on a recent move by Hamas leadership to improve relations with the Arab world.

“Ismail Haneyya, deputy head of Hamas political bureau, said that his Movement is proceeding in arranging relations with Arab countries especially neighboring states.” He also said, “Hamas is pursuing two parallel paths: regaining national unity and ending the division on the one hand and on the other achieving reconciliation based on partnership”

Hamas leadership knows that it will have to walk a fine line in attempts at Arab reconciliation in order not to alienate Iran, especially since the Gulf Cooperation Council formally designated Iran’s proxy Hezbollah as a terrorist group.

While Israeli/Arab talks are at a standstill to the disappointment of the Obama Administration, Hamas is likely looking for a way to break the stalemate through another intifada that bodes well for their organization’s mission and support. Even though ISIS has taken most of the terror headlines recently Palestinian Islamic terrorism is still a viable threat to the Western world.