Masada al-Mujahideen

Masada al-Mujahideen
مسعدة المجاهدين
Political leader	Abu al-Walid al-Maqdisi
Dates of operation	2008–2013
Allegiance	Al-Qaeda
Ideology	Salafist jihadism Wahhabism
Status	defunct
Allies	Tawhid and Jihad Group in Jerusalem Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem
Opponents	United States  Israel Hamas Jaysh al-Ummah
Battles and wars	Gaza–Israel conflict

Masada al-Mujahideen (Arabic: سعدة المجاهدين) was a Palestinian terrorist organization associated with Al-Qaeda operating within the Gaza Strip.^[1]

The group first came into prominence after releasing a video online showing them dropping a bomb on the Israeli city of Sderot.^[2] This prompted the Israeli Air Force to carry out airstrikes against Masada al-Mujahideen in the Gaza Strip.^[3] Following clashes with the Israeli Defense Forces, another jihadist organization in the Gaza Strip, Jaysh al-Ummah (also known as the Army of the Ummah), began fighting Masada al-Mujahideen due to disapproval of their activities.^[4] Later that year, Masada al-Mujahideen established a media wing for propaganda called Riah,^[5] which initially operated on Google+ until its account was taken down.^[6] The group then moved its operations to Facebook,^[7] where it created eulogies for Osama bin Laden,^[8] Attiya Allah,^[9] and Abu Yahya al-Libi.^[10]

Masada al-Mujahideen, a couple of months after the bomb attack, threatened further "operations" in Israel.^[11] Later that day, they claimed responsibility for a train fire in Haifa.^[12] A few days later, they also claimed responsibility for a cargo ship fire in Eilat.^[13] In July 2011, they claimed responsibility for a forest fire in Jerusalem^[14] and the Alfei Menashe fire.^[15] In October 2011, they took responsibility for multiple arson attacks in Israel.^[16] In November 2011, they claimed responsibility for an arson attack on a chemical factory owned by the Israeli government,^[17] and in December, they claimed responsibility for an arson attack on an industrial center.^[18] In 2012, they claimed responsibility for an arson attack in Be'er Ya'akov^[19] and set a military base in Ashkelon, owned by the Israel Defense Forces, on fire.^[20] Later that month, they claimed responsibility for an arson attack on an airplane factory in Haifa^[21] and a residential fire in the same city.^[22] In May 2012, in Northern Israel, they claimed responsibility for a series of fires and arson attacks, including some in the Golan Heights.^[23] The following day, they also claimed responsibility for fire attacks targeting IDF guards.^[24]

A month after the cargo ship fire, Masada al-Mujahideen attacked Palestinian Liberation Organization's soldiers following Palestine's initiation of land negotiations with Israel.^[25] The group also began carrying out light attacks on Hamas in response to their treatment of prisoners of war and regular detainees.^[26] In 2012, Masada al-Mujahideen accused Hamas of being responsible for the death of Salafi Jihadist leader Abu al-Walid al-Maqdisi and subsequently threatened and carried out attacks against Hamas.^[27][28]

In 2012, Masada al-Mujahideen attempted to claim responsibility for the Nevada forest fires, but their claim was later disproved.^[29]

In 2013, during one of Arizona's wildfires, Masada al-Mujahideen claimed responsibility with the statement, "Masada al-Mujahideen Fulfilled its Promise and Attacked America Again After the Expiration of the Period with Fires that Achieved Historic Results."^[30] They also celebrated the deaths of 19 firefighters who were attempting to put out the wildfire. However, local authorities in Arizona rejected the organization's claim.^[31][32]

• Islamist anti-Hamas groups in the Gaza Strip