Syria Today | Syria’s Foreign Minister meets with Hamas leaders

Syria’s Foreign Minister meets with Hamas leaders

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Mu’allem discussed with Hamas’ Political Bureau members, led by Khaled Mashaal, recent developments in the occupied Palestinian territories on June 9.

The two sides discussed the call by Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for inter-Palestinian dialogue, as well as Hamas’ approval of the move according to the Sana’a Declaration, the Yemeni Initiative and Damascus Arab Summit resolutions.

Syria, which hosts about 500,000 Palestinian refugees, is a key supporter of Hamas and a number of other Palestinian resistance groups such as Islamist Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Together with a number of other Arab countries, it is working to bring Hamas and the Abbas-led Fatah party into roundtable discussions regarding the disputed issues.

During the meeting, Mashaal voiced his group’s “readiness for inter-Palestinian dialogue to achieve reconciliation and guarantee the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights”.

The two Palestinian factions have been bitterly opposed since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, ousting Abbas’ Fatah.

Hamas claims it is the legitimate government of the occupied Palestinian territories after winning parliamentary elections in 2006. At the time, Abbas labelled the seizure a coup and has since started peace talks with Israel.

Hamas also began a ceasefire with Israel in Gaza on June 19. Under the terms of the agreement Israel is easing restrictions on the flow of goods in and out of Gaza, while Hamas has agreed to halt its missile attacks on southern Israel. If the ceasefire holds there may be further talks on a prisoner exchange.