The Gaza-based military wing of the West Bank-based Fatah faction, which is headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, has reportedly asked Iran for money to help it fight Israel.
In addition, Fatah unveiled a cross-border tunnel that leads into Israeli territory during an appeal on Iran’s state-owned Al-Alam television channel, Palestinian Media Watch reported. Al-Alam interviewed a masked fighter from the Gaza branch of Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades who showcased the new two-mile-long tunnel.
”We spend all our time trying to get money to fulfill our duty concerning our occupied lands and liberate them from the Zionist entity,” the fighter said.
“This is why we are asking [for money]… especially [from] Iran, which is a known long-time supporter of the resistance and the Palestinian cause,” he added.
The tunnel, according to the fighter, “is approximately 3.5 kilometers (2.2 miles) long and crosses the border between the Gaza Strip and the Zionist enemy. There are tunnels inside [Gaza] through which jihad fighters pass during war.”
While Iran’s funding of the Gaza-ruling Palestinian terror group Hamas is well-documented, the Islamic Republic’s relationship with the PA has been more under the radar over the years. Yet this month, Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee member Ahmed Majdalani announced that Abbas will visit Iran in November. Majdalani himself recently took a trip to Iran, where he met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
“The visit now by a PA emissary, Ahmad Majdalani, is an advance visit and will likely not generate headlines. But Abbas’s visit could be historic. Depending on how it goes, it may be a sign that he has fully gravitated away from diplomacy with Israel if he invests in his ties to the Islamic Republic,” Jonathan Schanzer, vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, recently told JNS.org.
JNS.ORG
{Matzav.com Israel}
