The head of the political bureau of the Palestinian Hamas movement, Ismail Haniyeh, revealed that the political group is making efforts to restore its relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

In an interview with RT on 15 September, Haniyeh stated that Hamas has been working on restoring ties with Saudi Arabia and Jordan after the group re-established diplomatic relations with the Syrian government.

He also highlighted that Hamas stands on equal terms with all of its Arab and international partners “and does not interfere in the internal affairs of any of these countries.”

Haniyeh accused the Fatah political party and other foreign influences to interfere in the Palestinian reconciliation process.

He also accused unidentified Western parties of attempting to discourage Hamas from visiting Moscow.

Last week, Haniyeh met Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a visit to Moscow, accompanied by a delegation of Hamas’s political wing.

Haniyeh expressed the delegation’s satisfaction with its recent visit to Russia, stating that both parties were able to reach a common agreement on several issues concerning the region.

Hamas also enjoys strong ties with the Islamic Jihad movement (PIJ), and Ismail Haniyeh assured supporters of the organization that “attempts to sow discord or division between the two parties will not succeed.”

According to reports, relations between Saudi Arabia and Hamas reached their worst level following the arrest of the movement’s leader, and former representative in Saudi Arabia, Muhammad al-Khudari, as well as his son.

In August 2021, the Saudi Criminal Court sentenced al-Khudari to 15 years in prison, among 68 Jordanians and Palestinians. The court charged al-Khudari for providing support to Hamas.

However, at the time Hamas denied the reports.

Hazem Qassem, the spokesperson of the Islamist group, said that “the report is fabricated and baseless,” in interview with The New Arab