By Nidal al-Mughrabi
Palestinian group Hamas congratulated the Syrian folks on Monday for reaching their “aspirations for freedom and justice” after toppling President Bashar al-Assad.
It was Hamas’ first public remark since insurgent forces swept into the Syrian capital Damascus on Sunday after a lightning advance that despatched Assad fleeing to Russia after a 13-year civil battle and 6 many years of his household’s autocratic rule.
“We stand strongly with the nice folks of Syria… and respect the need, the independence, and the political decisions of the folks of Syria,” the Islamist faction that has been governing the Gaza Strip stated in an announcement.
Hamas stated it hoped that post-Assad Syria would proceed “its historic and pivotal position in supporting the Palestinian folks”.
In a separate assertion,, Ziad al-Nakhala, head of the Islamic Jihad, an Iranian-backed group and an ally of Hamas, echoed that sentiment.
“The Islamic Jihad hopes Syria will stay an actual assist for the Palestinian folks, their simply trigger, because it has all the time been,” stated Nakhala.
Hamas publicly endorsed the 2011 Sunni Muslim road rebellion in opposition to Assad’s rule and vacated its Damascus headquarters in 2012, a transfer that angered Iran, an ally of each Assad and the Palestinian group.
Hamas, whose ideological roots stem from the Sunni Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, distanced itself from Assad – a member of the minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam – as he cracked down on the primarily Sunni Muslim protesters and rebels.
The Palestinian group determined in 2022 to revive ties with the Assad authorities and despatched a delegation to Damascus, the place Hamas leaders met Assad within the hope of repairing relations.
Assad’s Syria and Iran fashioned an “axis of resistance” with Lebanon’s Hezbollah motion and Palestinian militant teams to oppose Israel.
Hamas’s constructive response to the autumn of Assad contrasted with that of Shi’ite Muslim Hezbollah, which performed a serious half propping up Assad by years of battle. Assad’s Syria lengthy served as an important conduit for Iran to provide arms to the group.
A senior Hezbollah politician on Monday described occasions in Syria as a “main, harmful and new transformation”.
This text was produced by Reuters information company. It has not been edited by International South World.
