Report: Iran stops cash flow to Islamic Jihad organization
The dispute between Iran and Palestinian Islamic Jihad erupted after the group refused to issue a statement supporting the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.
By KHALED ABU TOAMEHAn Islamic Jihad militant attends an anti-Israel rally in Rafah.(photo credit: REUTERS)
Iran has stopped funding the Palestinian Islamic Jihad organization, which is already facing a severe financial crisis, the Palestinian daily Al-Quds reported on Wednesday.According to the paper, the organization has not been able to pay salaries to its members for the past four months due to the crisis.It said that the dispute between Iran and Palestinian Islamic Jihad erupted after the group refused to issue a statement supporting the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.The Iranians, the paper said, demanded that the organization issue a statement condemning the Saudi-led airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.The tensions between Tehran and the Palestinian organization prompted Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shallah to move from Iran to Lebanon, Al-Quds said.Shallah’s deputy, Ziad al-Nakhalah, is already based in Beirut together with other top officials of Islamic Jihad.The report said that the Iranian-backed Hizbullah group was trying to mediate between Islamic Jihad and Iran to end the crisis.The financial crisis has also forced Islamic Jihad to close down its TV station Palestine Today in east Jerusalem, the paper said.
