GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — A delegation from the political leadership of Islamic Jihad met with an adviser to the Syrian regime in Damascus Jan. 8. It was the first meeting held between the two sides since 2011, when they became estranged over Islamic Jihad's neutral position in the conflict in Syria.
Some Islamic Jihad leaders left Damascus and headed to Lebanon and Tehran in August 2012, while others remained to maintain some minimal ties with the Syrian regime. However, the movement’s neutral positions regarding the conflict in Syria and Yemen later angered Iran, the Syrian regime’s strategic ally. As a result, Iran reduced the movement’s funding in 2015. Islamic Jihad suffered a financial crisis until Iran resumed aid after its leaders repeatedly visited Tehran in 2017 and 2018.
The Islamic Jihad delegation, led by political bureau member Khaled al-Batsh, visited Damascus as part of a tour by the Islamic Jihad leadership to Lebanon, Iran and Syria to rebuild ties with the Iran-Syria-Hezbollah axis and secure financial, political and military support for the movement.
On Dec. 29, an Islamic Jihad delegation met with leaders from the Iranian regime in Tehran including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. On Jan. 10, the delegation met with Hezbollah officials in Beirut and discussed mobilizing political support for the Palestinian cause and restoring the financial and military support the movement enjoyed before 2015. The delegation received promises of support by the end of the visits.
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