Two senior officials from the Palestinian militant Hamas group visited Syria's capital on Wednesday for the first time since they were forced to leave the war-torn country a decade ago over backing armed opposition fighters.
The visit appears to be a first step toward reconciliation between Hamas and the Syrian government and follows a monthslong mediation by Iran and Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group — both key backers of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Over the years, Tehran and the Iran-backed Hezbollah have maintained their relations with Hamas despite Assad's rift with the Palestinian militants.
