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Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/03/us-palestinians-israel-islamicjihad-idUSTRE7A24RR20111103
Islamist Jihad Ready for All-Out War with Israel
(Reuters) Crispian Balmer and Nidal al-Mughrabi - The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, which traded deadly fire with Israel at the weekend in Gaza, does not expect a subsequent truce to last long and has at least 8,000 fighters ready for war, a spokesman said. "We are proud and honored to say that the Islamic Republic of Iran gives us support and help," Abu Ahmed, the spokesman for Islamic Jihad's armed wing, the Jerusalem Brigades, told Reuters in an interview. "We have every right to turn to every source of power for help." Jerusalem Brigades cells are dotted around Gaza and Abu Ahmed said there was huge demand from youngsters to join. "We take some, but can't accept everyone." The group got a boost to its standing in August when the new rulers in Egypt started dealing with it directly over truces, rather than through Hamas. Abu Ahmed said Hamas was not involved in the latest fighting and that all the talking was with Egypt. "Certainly in terms of ideology, there is no difference between Hamas and the Islamic Jihad. The difference is in the methodology," he said, adding that Hamas' governmental role meant that it was "more vulnerable to outside pressure."