Special to WorldTribune.com

LONDON — A commander of a leading Palestinian militia has been
killed in Syria.

Nidal Al Ashi was said to have been killed in fighting for the Sunni
revolt in Syria in July. Al Ashi, also known as Abu Hureira Al Maqdisi,
was identified as a senior operative of the Al Qaida-aligned Army of Islam,
based in the Gaza Strip.

“We bring to you, brothers in monotheism and jihad, and mujahideen, everywhere, the news of the martyrdom of the lion Abu Hureira al Maqdisi, may Allah have mercy on him, one of the lions of the Army of Islam,” Army of Islam said.

In a statement on July 27, the militia said Al Ashi was killed in Aleppo
during heavy shelling by the Syrian military. Army of Islam, led by Mumtaz Dughmoush, did not detail Al Ashi’s role in Aleppo.

Al Ashi was said to have been assigned to destroy the Christian presence in the Gaza Strip. Army of Islam said Al Ashi was imprisoned by Hamas for destroying churches and Christian schools. Later, he fled Gaza for Syria.

Army of Islam has been deemed the only Al Qaida-aligned Palestinian
militia in Syria. Another Palestinian-led militia was identified as Abdullah Azzam Brigades, headed by Majid Bin Mohammed Al Majid.

Dughmoush, a former Hamas officer, was said to have established a
presence in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. In August 2011, Dughmoush was
designated by the U.S. State Department as a global terrorist and accused of
attacks in Egypt in 2009 and 2011.

Others Army of Islam leaders were identified as Abu Harith Al Ansari and
Khattab Al Maqdasi. In December 2011, another Army of Islam commander,
Muaman Abu Daf, was killed in an Israel Air Force strike in Gaza City.

  Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Aleppo, Army of Islam, Nidal Al Ashi, Palestinian militia chief killed fighting for rebels in Syria, Sunni revolt