Leaders of Palestinian militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas engaged in talks with top Iranian officials in Tehran on Monday, coinciding with intensified violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Islamic Jihad chief Ziyad al-Nakhalah met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, while Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh held discussions with Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the newly-appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), before meeting with other high-ranking officials.
According to the Nournews website closely associated with the SNSC, Ahmadian conveyed to Haniyeh that “resistance” remains the most effective means to end the more than 75 years of occupation in Palestine. Nakhalah has been in Iran since the previous week and has held meetings with top Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Raisi.
During their meeting, President Raisi told Nakhalah that Israel is attempting to normalize relations with additional Arab and Muslim countries in order to dissuade young Palestinians from seeking to liberate the occupied territories. The president’s office, in a statement, praised the Palestinian “resistance” against Israel.
In 2020, Israel established diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Bahrain through the Abraham Accords brokered by the United States. Although Saudi Arabia has not recognized Israel, citing its treatment of Palestinians as a factor, the Sunni Muslim power and its rival Iran agreed to improve relations in March under a Chinese-brokered deal.
Simultaneous to the Iran-Palestinian talks, Israeli forces conducted a raid in Jenin, West Bank, on Monday. The raid resulted in the death of five Palestinians, including an Islamic Jihad militant, and left five Israeli border police officers and two soldiers injured. The Israeli army stated that the raid aimed to apprehend two “wanted suspects,” one affiliated with Hamas and the other with Islamic Jihad.
Haniyeh, leading a large delegation, arrived in Iran earlier on Monday, as reported by the state news agency IRNA. He is scheduled to hold discussions with President Raisi, Ayatollah Khamenei, and other officials. Iran staunchly supports the Palestinians and does not recognize its arch-enemy Israel, which, along with the United States, designates Hamas and Islamic Jihad as terrorist groups.
SOURCE: Ref Image from LBCI
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