Hamas congratulates the Syrian people on overthrowing Assad

Hamas, a Palestinian organization, praised the Syrian people on Monday for fulfilling their “aspirations for freedom and justice” following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad.

Following a 13-year civil war and 60 years of his family’s dictatorial reign, Hamas made its first public statement since opposition troops stormed into the Syrian capital Damascus on Sunday, sending Assad running to Russia.

“We stand strongly with the great people of Syria… and respect the will, the independence, and the political choices of the people of Syria,” in a statement issued by the Islamist group in charge of Gaza.

Hamas expressed its hope that Syria would maintain “its historical and pivotal role in supporting the Palestinian people” once Assad leaves office.

Ziad al-Nakhala, the leader of the Islamic Jihad, a Hamas affiliate and organization supported by Iran, repeated that position in a separate statement.

“The Islamic Jihad hopes Syria will remain a real support for the Palestinian people, their just cause, as it has always been,” Nakhala stated.

Iran, an ally of both Assad and the Palestinian organization, was incensed when Hamas publicly supported the 2011 Sunni Muslim Street rebellion against Assad’s regime and left its Damascus headquarters in 2012.

As Assad crushed down on the mostly Sunni Muslim protesters and rebels, Hamas, which has its ideological roots in the Sunni Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, separated from Assad, a member of the minority Alawite sect, a branch of Shi’ite Islam.

The harsh Assad family dictatorship that had ruled Syria for fifty years came to an end on Monday.

In an effort to mend fences, the Palestinian organization despatched a delegation to Damascus in 2022 after deciding to reestablish contacts with the Assad regime. There, Hamas leaders met with Assad.

Together with the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon and Palestinian terrorist organizations, Assad’s Syria and Iran established a “axis of resistance” to confront Israel.

In contrast to Shi’ite Muslim Hezbollah, which was instrumental in supporting Assad during years of war, Hamas responded positively to Assad’s overthrow. For a long time, Iran used Assad’s Syria as a key route to provide the organization with weapons.

“Major, dangerous and new transformation” is how one top Hezbollah politician characterized the current state of affairs in Syria on Monday.