[caption id="attachment_149908" align="alignright" width="164"] Hamas political bureau chief Khaled Meshaal[/caption]
Khaled Meshaal, a senior leader of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, is to travel to the Iranian capital of Tehran soon, a senior Hamas member says.
Ahmed Yousef confirmed on Friday that Meshaal will travel to Tehran in less than a month, according to the Palestinian news agency Felestin al Yaum.
The official, who serves as a senior adviser to the Hamas government in Gaza, said that the trip is mainly aimed at improvingthe ties between Iran and Hamas.
Serving as the head of Hamas political bureau, Meshaal has been the most influential figure in the resistance organization since Israels assassination of Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi in 2004. Meshaal chose Qatar as a base in 2012 after an armed militancy broke out in Syria, where he had resided since 2001.
Yousef said that Hamas leaders have held numerous meetings with Iranian officials over the issue and preparations will soon be made for Mehsaals visit to country.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian announced in late December 2014 that Meshaal is set to visit Iran, but did not declare a date for the visit. The senior Iranian diplomat also downplayed rumors about the suspension of ties between Iran and Hamas, saying relations between Hamas and the Islamic Republic of Iran have never been cut.
Iran has always declared that it supports the oppressed Palestinian people and uses whatever it has in its diplomatic capacity to back the Palestinian cause.