Islamic Jihad warns it will 'act accordingly' if Israel continues Gaza strikes
Continued Israeli strikes 'will certainly lead' to a resumption of military confrontation
Palestinian armed groups in Gaza have warned Egyptian mediators that their patience is "running out" after Israel Thursday evening launched an attack against Hamas positions in retaliation for the launching of incendiary balloons, a senior Islamic Jihad official told the Al-Ayyam newspaper on Saturday.
The exchanges of hostilities come as the UN and Egypt try to consolidate a fragile ceasefire struck on May 21 following nearly two weeks of intense fighting between Israel and terrorist groups in Gaza.
"The organization will react accordingly to any future Israeli military attack," the Palestinian official warned, adding that "we will not allow the Israeli government to impose conditions on the resistance or isolate Gaza."
He also indicated that "the joint headquarters of the organizations in Gaza have formulated a final and unified position to face Israeli conduct in the coming days."
Continued Israeli strikes "will certainly lead" to a resumption of military confrontation across the border in the near future,' the militant added.
The ruling Hamas group in Gaza has reiterated to Egyptian mediators that it rejects all attempts by Israel to link the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory to a possible prisoner exchange between the two arches-enemies, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reported on Saturday.
Hamas still has in captivity two Israelis - Avraham Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed - who allegedly entered Gaza of their own accord in 2014 and 2015.
The bodies of two IDF soldiers killed in action - Lt. Hadar Goldin and St.-Sgt. Oron Shaul - have also been in the hands of the Islamist group since the Gaza war in 2014.