Fatah delegation to meet Bashar Al-Assad in Syria, says Palestinian official

High-level officials from the Palestinian faction Fatah will meet Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in Damascus, a senior official from the movement said Monday.

The officials will pass on a general message from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas about developments in Palestine, Abdullah Abdullah, deputy head of international relations for Fatah's Central Committee told Arabi 21.

No date was given for the meeting.

"Fatah means to put across to the Arab brotherhood what the Palestinian cause is going through, and we are interested in continuing communication with Syria," the official said.

Members of the delegation include Jibril Rajoub, who is secretary-general of Fatah's Central Committee, and Rawhi Fattouh, the committee's head of international relations, Abdullah said.

While in Damascus, representatives from Fatah and the umbrella organisation it is part of, the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), will take part in dialogue with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), an armed group based in the Syrian capital.

The delegation was also in Damascus for an event celebrating 57 years since Fatah launched its first militant attack on Israel.

Until 2015, Fatah communicated little with Syria.

The regime of Hafez Al-Assad, Bashar's father, supported Christian militias against the Fatah-dominated PLO in Lebanon since the late 1970s. Bashar Al-Assad became president after his father's death in 2000.

After a 32-year break, Fatah and Syria officially restored ties in 2015. The Palestinian faction opened an office in the Syrian capital Damascus.

Hamas was based in Damascus until the 2011 uprising against the Syrian regime, which saw them leave the country.