The Islamic Jihad movement in Gaza announced June 23 that it was temporarily suspending ties with Hamas, accusing Gaza authorities of being responsible for the death of one of the group's members. Raed Qassim Jundeyeih, a member of Islamic Jihad's militant wing, the al-Quds Brigades, died after being shot a day earlier by Hamas police officers. Police had gone to an address in Gaza City June 22 to deliver summons orders to a member of the Jundeyeih family. Upon approaching the home, members of the family opened fire at the officers and Jundeyeih was wounded in the ensuing gunfight.
Islamic Jihad told Ma'an News Agency that members affiliated with Hamas were responsible for the death, describing Jundeyeih's death as a "favor" for Israel, whether intentional or not. Tensions further increased after a member of Islamic Jihad was hit by a jeep driven by a Hamas member during the funeral procession of Jundeyeih. Islamic Jihad said that Jundeyeih was wanted by Israeli authorities for being the head of a rocket-firing unit. "Despite losing this great martyr, our only option remains to resist our common enemy which is the Zionist enemy and the powers of injustice that support it," the group added.
From Ma'an News Agency [10], June 24
