Palestinian official visits Iran to improve ties

An official from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party is in Tehran to improve relations and find a way to end the crisis of Palestinian refugees stranded in the Syrian civil war, a Palestinian official said Wednesday. Abbas Zaki, a senior member of Fatah Central Committee, said that one of his colleagues, Jebril Rajoub, has been in Tehran for two days holding a series of meetings with Iranian officials. Abbas sent Rajoub to Tehran in an official visit that is the first of its kind in years. Ties between the two sides have been frigid, especially as Tehran was the main backer of Islamic Hamas movement, Fatah's bitter rival that has been ruling the Gaza Strip since 2007. "Our ties with Iran are improving and we look for more opening and progress in this relationship," Zaki told Xinhua. "We want to gain the Iranians' support for the Palestinian cause." On Tuesday, Rajoub met Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. Rajoub later told reporters that "a new chapter of relations has started based on mutual respect." Zaki highlighted Iran's "important" posture in the Middle East, signaling Palestinian support to the Syrian government, which is backed by Tehran. "Syria is under a harsh foreign attack and we are with our brothers there," Zaki said. "If it was an internal conflict in Syria, we will be neutral, but when all countries are against Syria, we are with Syria." Earlier Wednesday, Rajoub told reporters that he discussed with Iranian officials ways to allow food and medical aid into Yarmouk, a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria that has been under siege for months. Dozens of Palestinians have died due to malnutrition and hunger in Yarmouk, where forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad imposed the siege reportedly to chase down foreign rebels who were allegedly taking refuge in the camp. Unlike the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah, Hamas evacuated its longtime base in Damascus, refusing to side with al-Assad. As a result, relations between Hamas and its Iranian allies were almost severed.