We have become accustomed to hearing about Fatah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Palestinian arena. In recent months, a new player has joined the arena: the “Lion’s Den” organization. The new organization has become a center of attraction for young people in Nablus. What is the new organization and how was it born? What is its ideology and symbols? And what are its chances of success? ?
The residents of Nablus are proud of their heritage, which is characterized by historical struggles. In the Middle Ages, the city was called “Little Damascus” because of its markets, and in modern times it received the name “Jabal a-Nar” (Mountain of Fire) because of the burning of Napoleon’s camp that camped near the city about 220 years ago.
Nablus has always been a center of opposition to Israel. But it is not only a city of warriors. Nablus has significant tourist potential and is an important agricultural center, with excellent food – the khanapa, tahina and cheeses are some of the best in the Middle East.
Nablus has always been a center of opposition to Israel. But it is not only a city of warriors. It has a significant tourist potential and is an important agricultural center, with excellent food – the knapa, the tahina and the cheeses are among the best in the Mazat
A new organization was born
The new organization in Nablus, “Erin al-Osud” – the Lion’s Den, made headlines in the Arab world and in Israel only in the last few months. The organization took responsibility for a series of attacks in the months of August-September-October, mainly opening fire on IDF checkpoints and settlers in northern Samaria.
The Lions’ Den was established in Old Nablus by a number of activists from the “Martyrs of al-Aqsa”, the military wing of Fatah, in February 2022. In July, the founder Muhammad Bashar al-Azizi (Abu Saleh), 23 years old, was killed. It is said that he once joked to -Azizi with his friends and called them “Gov Aryot” and after his death his partners adopted the name in his memory.
It was only at the beginning of September this year that the organization officially and publicly announced its founding and held a military parade in Nablus. Although the activists of Al-Aqsa martyrs, those who do not listen to the Fatah leadership, make up the majority of the organization, but it also includes activists from the military wing of Hamas – Az ad-Din al-Qassam, of the Islamic Jihad – the Al-Quds companies, and also a small number of activists from the Popular Front The wave of arrests carried out by the Palestinian Authority against the organization’s activists infuriated Abu Mazen.
The religious ideology
The number of members of the lion’s den is unknown, probably a few dozen. These are young men in their twenties who carry out terrorist attacks against both civilian and military Israeli targets. Their agenda goes against the “Inkisam”, the division between Fatah on the one hand and Hamas and Jihad on the other, and unites the members of the younger generation under one banner of armed struggle against the “occupation”.
The Lions’ Den was established in Old Nablus by some “Al-Aqsa Martyrs” activists in February 2022. In July, the 23-year-old founder Al-Azizi was killed. It is said that he once joked with his friends and called them “The Lions’ Den”, and the name was adopted in his memory
As a unifying body, they add to their list of martyrs the leaders of all factions, Yasser Arafat (founder of Fatah), Ahmed Yassin (founder of Hamas) and Fathi Shakaki (founder of Islamic Jihad). Their ideology does contain a national tone, but mainly clear religious messages : The expulsion of the settlers and the “liberation of Jerusalem”.
Their logo, crossing two guns above the Dome of the Rock, is very reminiscent of that of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs, as well as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, all combining guns with the Dome of the Rock. The logo of the Lions’ Den shows that the unification of the factions is only possible under one condition: if the goal is an armed struggle to liberate Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The slogans of the organization indicate an agenda closer to the organizations in Gaza than to Fatah in the West Bank: Jihad for the occupation of Palestine from the sea to the river. The repeated slogan is: “The hand will not stop holding the gun”, meaning that it is an eternal jihad and the fighters of the organization are called Mog Ahedin – “holy warriors”.
The possibility cannot be ruled out that the young people are also inspired by the style of jihad organizations in Syria and Iraq such as ISIS and al-Qaeda: the black clothing with the elders and the raising of the finger symbolizing the belief in one God. Some of their Twitter pages contain pictures of Abdullah Azzam, one of the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood who operated not far from Nablus, in the Jenin area, and in the 1980s became one of the leaders of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
For comparison (from top and right to left): the Lions’ Den logo, Al-Aqsa martyrs, Islamic Jihad and Hamas:
Lion’s Den logo, Wikipedia
The flags of the military arms of Fatah Jihad and Hamas, from the Twitter of the Lions’ Den
All these symbols raise the suspicion that behind the new lion’s den is an old Islamic organization. Most of the activists of the Lions’ Den are young people who are tired of the division of the previous generation. As expected from the younger generation, they spread their propaganda on Tiktok, but it was blocked last October and then they opened an encrypted Telegram instead.
The number of followers is estimated at tens of thousands, but this number does not indicate the number of members of the organization, but rather the great popularity it enjoys on the Palestinian street (and even among young people throughout the Arab world).
The possibility cannot be ruled out that the young people are also inspired by the style of jihad organizations in Syria and Iraq such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda: the black clothing with the elders and the raising of the finger symbolizing the belief in one God
The organization’s websites on Twitter are still open and you can learn from them about the characteristics of the organization. Besides religious slogans, there are quite a few videos of a solidarity procession with the organization in Brussels and even of fighters training under the same name in the Rashedia camp south of Tyre. These videos could hint at fundraising in Belgium and Lebanon. It should be noted that at the demonstration in Belgium shouts of praise were also heard for Muhammad Dif (one of the founders of the military wing of Hamas).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmfkkRlls9g
The organization’s messages on the “Axis of Resistance” are full of contradictions. On the one hand, they express on Twitter sympathy with the Shia Houthi struggle in Yemen against Saudi Arabia and in favor of Hezbollah in Lebanon, but on the other hand, they also show videos of support for the protesters in Iran against the regime.
threatens the authority
What worries the Palestinian Authority is that some of the members of the new organization left its ranks and smuggled weapons from the warehouses of the Palestinian police. The organization’s websites define Abu Mazen as a traitor and the Palestinian Authority as an accomplice of Israel. About a month ago, the Authority managed to arrest Motzaev Eshetia, a member of the Lion Guard who also belongs to Hamas. His investigation could reveal the organization’s ties to Gaza.
The Lions’ Den is somewhat similar to local organizations of individuals that arose a few months ago, such as the “Genin Brigade”, the Jenin Brigade that was probably established about a year ago by the Islamic Jihad and included members from other organizations, or the “Nablus Brigade”, the Nablus Brigade, established At the beginning of the year, perhaps as a prelude to the Lions’ Reserve. Unlike these divisions, the Lions’ Reserve shows signs of an actual organization with uniforms, a logo and a budget whose origin is still unclear. It manages to mobilize the street, organize demonstrations and strikes against the PA and has an organized propaganda system.
Unlike previous local organizations, Gov Aryot stands out as a real organization with uniforms, a logo and a budget whose origin is unclear. He manages to mobilize the street, organize demonstrations and strikes against the PA and has an organized propaganda system
Palestinian commentators testify that the Lions Den constitutes a change in the pattern of Palestinian organization, which is based on geographical regional division and not on organizations. According to their explanation, the organization was created in a political space.
Gov Aryot slightly mentions the unity of the factions in the “joint operations room” in nearby Jenin about a year ago (link to my articles: https://www.zman.co.il/253559/). The young people do not see the horizon of a political process and, on the other hand, neither a liberation struggle. This is a rebellion of the young against the previous generation that actually failed on both tracks, the negotiation (Fatah) and the struggle (Hamas and Jihad) together.
The Palestinian commentators explain that from the point of view of the residents of Nablus, they are under siege almost like Gaza: Nablus is home to nearly 200,000 residents and is surrounded by settlements, checkpoints and IDF military positions. In addition, following attacks, Israel occasionally imposes a blockade on the city, which hurts significant in its economy.
It’s too early to eulogize
There is no doubt that from the organization’s point of view, he chose a very bad time to announce his appearance, close to the elections in Israel. Every government in Israel, regardless of whether it is left or right, will make an effort before elections to prove that it knows how to deal with terrorism with determination. Therefore, the IDF took drastic measures in order to eliminate the organization in Ivo.
Palestinian commentators testify that the Lions Den constitutes a change in the pattern of Palestinian organization, which is based on geographical regional division and not on organizations. According to their explanation, the organization was created in a political space
At the end of October, the IDF conducted a large operation to eliminate the top of the organization. Shortly before the operation, Nablus Governor Ibrahim Ramadan tried to appeal to the leadership of Gov Aryot to lay down their weapons before the bitter end for them came. After the operation, several senior members of the organization who survived surrendered to the authority so that they would not be eliminated.
Palestinian commentators referred to the name of the organization and wrote that the lions are aggressive animals that do not surrender. The lions lick their wounds and come back to attack because that is their nature. The wave of assassinations does create a temporary deterrent, but it also produces for the new organization its first martyrs, who unfortunately are an inspiration to young people.
The younger generation of the Lions’ Den did not experience the two intifadas. He wants to get his own fighting chance and believes he will succeed where his predecessors failed. Experts in the Palestinian Authority see the activity of the Lions’ Den youth as a message to Israel that the means of controlling the territories have failed, both the carrot and the stick – the repression and the eliminations as well as the economic relief and work permits.
Maybe we will find out later that the lions’ den was a test balloon of Hamas or the Islamic Jihad in Nablus. We may also discover that the Palestinian Authority allowed its establishment on purpose, in order to convince Israel that it must strengthen the PA’s mechanisms and significantly strengthen Abu Mazen’s rule.
Palestinian commentators referred to the name of the organization and wrote that the lions are aggressive animals that do not surrender. They lick their wounds and come back to attack because that is their nature. The wave of assassinations does create a temporary deterrent, but it also produces martyrs for the organization
It is still too early to answer the question of whether the lion’s den is a passing phenomenon, time will tell. But the phenomenon of the local organizations of young Palestinians shows that the West Bank is a pressure cooker, which will further challenge the security system and the next government in Israel.