Skip to main content

Hamas says leadership visited Russia, met Sergey Lavrov

A Hamas official has revealed that his movement "recently" visited Moscow and warned that the group's "patience is running out" with Israel.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh (front) flashes the victory gesture upon arriving for a meeting with representatives of other Palestinian factions at the Palestinian embassy in Lebanon's capital Beirut on September 3, 2020, in rare talks on how to respond to such accords and to a Middle East peace plan announced by Washington this year. - The meeting in Beirut is joined by video conference with talks in Ramallah between Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and representatives of Palestinian factions there. Haniyeh
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh (front) flashes a victory sign upon arriving for a meeting with representatives of other Palestinian factions at the Palestinian Embassy in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Sept. 3, 2020. — ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

The Palestinian armed group Hamas said on Tuesday that it sent a high-level delegation to Russia and held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

In an interview published on Hamas’ website, Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’ political bureau, said party leaders visited Russia and met Lavrov and that the visit was a reflection of Hamas’ weight among major global powers.

"The leadership of the movement visited Moscow and met Sergey Lavrov. It was an important visit that highlights the role of the movement with many global actors," Arouri said. He added that there might be another international Hamas trip "in the coming weeks." Arouri did not specify when the visit to Moscow took place, saying only that it happened "recently."  

Commenting on the increasing Israeli attacks against Palestinians ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Arouri said the movement’s “patience is running out.”

SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE

Continue reading this exclusive analysis

Original reporting and analysis unavailable elsewhere. Subscribe to AL-MONITOR to read this story and access everything we publish