The Hamas movement marked the end of its crisis in its relations with Bashar Assad’s regime this week, which began 10 years ago following the decision of then Political Bureau Chairman Khaled Mashal to sever relations with the Syrian regime and move the Hamas headquarters from Damascus to Doha in Qatar in protest of the president’s massacres among his Sunnis people.
President Bashar Assad humiliated the leadership of Hamas for many years as revenge for betraying him, he rejected all attempts to reconcile with it after Ismail Haniyeh replaced Khaled Mashal in the position.
Iran and Hezbollah put heavy pressure on the president Assad until he surrendered and agreed to give Hamas another chance.
A delegation of Hamas led by Khalil al-Haya, who is responsible for relations with the Arab and Islamic world, went to Damascus together with several delegations of Palestinian factions and stayed in the palace of President Bashar Assad.
At the beginning of the crisis, the Hamas movement supported the overthrow of Bashar Assad’s regime , then moved to take a neutral position and eventually returned to fully supporting the Syrian regime and condemned the Israeli attacks in Syria.
The “Muslim Brotherhood” movement, to which Hamas belongs, opposed the reconciliation with Bashar Assad and tried to convince Ismail Haniyeh to refrain from it, but he did not accept her position.
Khalil al-Haya, head of the delegation of Hamas to Syria said that this was a “historic visit” and he praised Syria’s support for the Palestinian problem.
The atmosphere at the meeting was good and both sides agreed, according to Hamas sources, to put the differences behind them.
Hamas officials say that following the important meeting with President Assad there will be further developments in the coming days, according to them Syria will support the Palestinian resistance and its plans, in the coming days there will be further rapprochement steps until the reopening of the Hamas representative office in Damascus.
Rebuilding trust between the two sides is the main task now, Khalil al-Haya is discussed with President Bashar Assad and other Syrian officials ways to support the Palestinian resistance.
Senior officials in the military wing of Hamas are not satisfied with the reopening of the movement’s branch offices in Damascus, they want military freedom of action and a “green light” to establish a military infrastructure in Syria that can attack Israel with rockets when necessary.
The highly publicized meeting of President Bashar Assad with the delegations of the Palestinian factions is intended to convey to the Arab world a message of unity and the stabilization of Syria alongside the Palestinian problem through support for the Palestinian opposition to the policies of Palestinian Authority Chairman Abu Mazen.
This meeting strengthens the position of the Hamas movement and further weakens the position of the Palestinian Authority on the Palestinian street.
The Hamas movement is now coordinated with all the elements that form the “axis of resistance” to Israel:
Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and the Islamic Jihad.
The Hamas movement expressed support to the Syrian regime in the unity of the Syrian land and against the Israeli attacks on Syria.
It announced that there is a consensus in the movement’s leadership on the renewal of ties with Syria and that it is turning a new page and looking forward.
Hamas informed Turkey and Qatar about the renewal of ties with Syria and it claimed that it had not heard from them any opposition to the move.
Reconciliation between the movement Hamas for the Syrian regime is not good for Israel.
It strengthens the “Axis of Evil” headed by Iran which is leading
opposition to any political settlement with Israel, this axis opposes the Oslo Accords and supports the armed struggle until the destruction of Israel and the establishment of a Palestinian state in its place.
