The Palestinian resistance movement Islamic Jihad has reaffirmed its commitment to the ceasefire agreement with the Israeli regime in Gaza, while vowing not to lay down its arms.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Abu Hamza, the military spokesman of the al-Quds Brigades, the group’s armed wing, said the movement would continue to resist the Israeli occupation of “our land, even if it lasts for years.”

“We will not abandon our weapons,” Abu Hamza stressed the group's unwavering stance.

The spokesman emphasized that the movement maintains a strong relationship with other resistance factions.

“We are facing a pivotal and difficult stage and stand at a historic crossroads, where the people, the nation, and the resistance stand together, at one of the stations of Arab and Islamic struggle,” the statement added.

It noted that the Israeli war on Gaza, which ended earlier this month with a ceasefire after nearly two years, was not a reaction to the al-Aqsa Flood operation, “but rather reflects a premeditated intention for an extermination war with unlimited American support.”

Abu Hamza asserted that the October 7, 2023, operation “was imposed on us and came as a response to the endless crimes” of Israel, including the occupation of al-Quds and the West Bank, its attacks and siege of Gaza, as well as the human rights violations committed against Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

“The [Israeli] occupation’s ‘army’ lacks humanity and values; it is a racist thug army.”

The statement honored the resistance fighters who lost their lives during the war, including the former spokesman of al-Quds Brigades, Naji Maher Abu Saif.

Islamic Jihad also commended the support provided to Palestine by “a faithful group in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran” during the war.

Israel's two-year-long genocidal war on Gaza killed nearly 68,300 Palestinians and left 170,373 people injured.

The truce represents the first phase of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan, with subsequent stages expected to be negotiated at a later date.

The Israeli regime has since killed dozens of Palestinians in attacks across Gaza in violation of the ceasefire. 

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