GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — For the first time since its members were elected in September 2018, Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s political bureau held a plenary meeting in Cairo Dec. 3. The summit follows the Egypt-mediated Nov. 14 cease-fire agreement with Israel and Israeli reports that Egypt is making efforts toward a long-term truce agreement between Israel and the Gaza Strip.

Members of Islamic Jihad's political bureau arrived in Cairo Dec. 3 from the Gaza Strip and other Arab and Islamic countries, led by Islamic Jihad Secretary General Ziad al-Nakhaleh. In December 2012, Israel denied Nakhaleh entry to the Gaza Strip, when he served as deputy secretary general of the movement, threatening to assassinate him if he does.

The logistic and security difficulties make it hard for Islamic Jihad like other Palestinian organizations, especially Hamas, to convene a meeting bringing together its leadership that is based in the Palestinian territories and abroad. Most importantly is that Israel prevents these leaderships from entering the Gaza Strip, and that these organizations are unable to secure a video conference, believing that Israel is capable of intercepting and tapping it.

Islamic Jihad is not the first Palestinian movement to hold a broad-based leadership meeting in Cairo. In 2017, seeking to remain the first sponsor of the Palestinian cause in the Middle East, Egypt allowed Hamas’ political bureau to hold a plenary meeting in September for the first time since being elected in May that year.