Media Wire

Hamas delegation visits Saudi Arabia to mend ties

A delegation of senior officials from the Palestinian Hamas movement has traveled to Saudi Arabia as the two sides try to revive relations.

Palestinian media reported that the delegation, including Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the group abroad, Khaled Mashal, and officials Mousa Abu Marzook and Khalil al-Hayya, arrived in the Saudi city of Jeddah late on Monday.

Citing sources, the reports said the delegation will perform the Umrah pilgrimage in the final days of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

Ties between Riyadh and Hamas deteriorated in 2007, following the resistance group’s victory in the Palestinian legislative elections and clashes with the Fatah political party in the Gaza Strip.

In 2019, Saudi Arabia arrested dozens of Hamas members, claiming that they were threatening the kingdom’s rule.

Hamas leaders have in recent months sent messages that they would like to improve relations with Saudi Arabia. In turn, the kingdom has released many of Hamas detainees, including senior member Mohammad Al-Khudari.

Following the release of two Palestinians linked to Hamas back in February, the Gaza-based group expressed hope that the development would be “a prelude to opening a new page with the brothers in Saudi Arabia.”

“We affirm our keenness on positive relations with our brothers in Saudi Arabia and all brotherly countries in the service of the Palestinian cause and our Arab and Islamic nation,” it announced in a statement.

The Hamas delegation’s trip to Saudi Arabia came more than a month after Tehran and Riyadh agreed to a China-brokered reconciliation deal to resume their diplomatic ties.

Coinciding with Hamas officials’ Saudi trip, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is visiting the kingdom upon an official invitation by Riyadh.

He is expected to meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday to discuss the latest developments regarding the Palestinian cause and the situation in the region, as well as the strengthening of Palestinian-Saudi relations, Wafa news agency reported.

IFP Media Wire

Reports and views published in the Media Wire section have been retrieved from other news agencies and websites, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website. The IFP may change the headlines of the reports in a bid to make them compatible with its own style of covering Iran News, and does not make any changes to the content. The source and URL of all reports and news stories are mentioned at the bottom of each article.

Recent Posts

Iranian shepherd soothes attacking bear

A video has gone viral in Iran showing a shepherd trying to calm down a…

1 hour ago

Iran’s Lake Urmia sees significant improvement amidst restoration efforts

An Iranian official reports that the shrinking Lake Urmia is in better condition than last…

4 hours ago

Four terrorists killed during clash with IRGC forces in Iran’s southeast

Iranian security forces have killed another four terrorists in the southeastern city of Rask in…

6 hours ago

Former Parliament chief: Iran should not tie affairs to Trump

The former speaker of the Iranian Parliament and a current member of the country's Expediency…

6 hours ago

IRGC chief commander: Resistance grandeur led to changes in US leadership

The commander-in-chief of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) says that the power of Palestinian…

7 hours ago

Iran signs key agreements during communications minister’s visit to Cuba, Venezuela

Iran’s Minister of Communications Sattar Hashemi has recently concluded a "productive" six-day trip to Cuba…

9 hours ago