How Palestinian Islamic Jihad Shocked Hamas
"The price of war": A leaked report reveals Islamic Jihad knew its Iranian-spec rockets were failing and hitting Gazan homes, but continued launches anyway. Documents show even Hamas was stunned by the group's disregard for Palestinian lives.
A recovered internal document has revealed that the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leadership knowingly authorized the launch of defective rockets during the "Swords of Iron" war, despite being aware that these projectiles frequently malfunctioned and fell within the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of Palestinian civilians.
The document, investigated by the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center and first reported by Kan News, details a high-stakes meeting in Beirut between a senior Hamas official (codenamed "Ahmed") and Akram al-Ajouri, the head of the Islamic Jihad’s military wing.
According to the report, the Hamas representative confronted al-Ajouri over the high failure rate of PIJ projectiles, stating, "Your rockets are falling on people's homes in broad daylight, and this is happening repeatedly."
Al-Ajouri’s response reportedly stunned the Hamas leadership. Dismissing the loss of Palestinian lives, he said, "We are in a war. And even if a thousand people are killed by friendly fire, then that is the price of war."
During the exchange, al-Ajouri admitted that the organization was fully aware of the technical flaws in its arsenal. He revealed that the defective rockets were manufactured locally using blueprints and technical specifications provided by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The document highlights a rare moment of internal friction, with Hamas officials expressing anger at the PIJ for the reputational and physical damage caused by these "misfires" occurring in plain view of the Gazan public.
The revelation sheds new light on the disaster at the Al-Ahli Hospital early in the war. While Hamas initially blamed an Israeli airstrike for the explosion that killed hundreds in the hospital courtyard, IDF evidence, including Al-Jazeera footage, later proved the blast was caused by a failed PIJ rocket launch.
The seized document confirms that this was not an isolated technical error, but a calculated risk accepted by the PIJ leadership as a "price" they were willing to pay.