Hamas on Monday congratulated Syrian rebel troops on the ousting of President Bashar Assad, which brought an end to his family’s five-decade rule the previous day.
In a statement posted to Telegram, the Sunni terrorist organization stressed its “commitment to Syria’s unity, the integrity of its territories, and respect for the Syrian people’s will, independence and political choices.
“We also emphasize the importance of Syria continuing its historical and pivotal role in supporting the Palestinian people and their resistance to achieve the goals of their just cause, while solidifying Syria’s leadership role on the Arab and Islamic fronts, as well as regionally and internationally,” the statement continued.
Hamas concluded by condemning Israel, saying it “rejects any Zionist ambitions or schemes targeting brotherly Syria, its land and its people.”
Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas said that his Ramallah-based organization “stands by the Syrian people.”
Abbas reaffirmed “the need to respect the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity” of the Syrian Arab Republic, according to the P.A.'s Wafa agency.
Abbas urged all involved to prioritize “the interests of the Syrian people, in a way that guarantees the restoration of Syria’s important role in the region and the world, which serves the interests of the Palestinian people and their just cause toward freedom and independence.”
In a separate statement, Abbas’s Palestine Liberation Organization on Monday expressed support for “the Syrian people and their choices in shaping the future of Syria based on their right to self-determination.”
According to the Wafa report, the PLO during a meeting in Damascus on Monday discussed “the issue of strengthening of relations between the Palestinian and Syrian peoples, while stressing noninterference in internal affairs and their neutrality regarding this event, and the need to preserve Syria’s security, stability and territorial integrity.
The Iranian-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group, which operated in Syria under the protection of the Assad regime, called the developments in the country “an internal Syrian matter.”
“The movement hopes that Syria will continue to be a true supporter and ally of the Palestinian people and their just cause, as it has always been,” PIJ chief Ziyad al-Nakhalah said, according to Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen satellite news television channel, which is affiliated with Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
Assad fled Damascus on Sunday as rebel groups stormed the capital, ending his family’s five-decade rule.
“The tyrant Bashar Assad has been overthrown,” a rebel spokesperson declared in a statement carried on state television on Sunday morning.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which has spearheaded the assault that led to Assad’s downfall, has historic ties to al-Qaeda. Syrian rebel leader Abu Muhammad al-Julani has a $10 million bounty placed on his head by the U.S. government for a series of terrorist attacks and kidnappings in the Middle Eastern country.
