Hamas chief pens letter to Iranian supreme leader, praising administrative support
Haniyeh conveyed his "utter joy [for] Iran's readiness to equip the resistance for whatever it needs to discharge its duty" to Khamenei adding that he thanks God for his presence.
By ZACHARY KEYSERThe son of senior Hamas terrorist Mazen Fuqaha sits on the shoulders of Hamas Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar(photo credit: REUTERS)
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh penned a letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praising the Iranian government for their "extensive" support of the Hamas-ruled Gaza coastal enclave, according to Khamenei's official website.Haniyeh conveyed his "utter joy [for] Iran's readiness to equip the resistance for whatever it needs to discharge its duty" to Khamenei adding that he thanks God for his presence.The resistance Haniyeh is referring to are anti-Israel and anti-United States stances, a term Iran and its allies use regularly to define these types of activities.In addition, Haniyeh conversed his eternal gratitude "for assistance, special and extensive support" of the Hamas government claiming that recent statements made by the Supreme Leader in favor of the Gazan administration "has opened new horizons" for the coastal enclave.A Palestinian delegation met with leaders of the Iranian government last July in Tehran led by Deputy Chairman of the Political Bureau of the Hamas movement, Saleh Arouri. Haniyeh praised the administration for "the excellent reception" Hamas delegates received when visiting the Islamic Republic, after years of sporadic and cold correspondence between the two government entities.Arouri is one of the founders of Hamas’s military wing, the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades, and is responsible for several bloody terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers, including the 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank.Last November, the US State Department announced a $5 million reward for information which would lead to Arouri's capture.According to Israeli sources, the Iranian government increased their annual pledge to the Hamas government two weeks after the delegation's departure from Tehran. Whereas normally the Iranian administration would send $100 million in aid each year to Gaza, they will now be sending $360 million annually, in exchange for information about Israel's missile technology.Hamas is an extremely hostile organization well-rooted in Palestinian society, driven by an intense religious-ideological motivation to destroy Israel.Tzvi Joffre and Efraim Inbar contributed to this report.
