Hamas leader Haniyeh visits Beirut, for first time in 27 years

For the first time in 27 years, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh has returned to Beirut, a spokesperson for the terror group says.

Haniyeh’s visit was suddenly canceled last night before being put back on the agenda this morning. Along with a number of Palestinian factions based in Beirut, Haniyeh will participate by videoconference in a planned meeting of Palestinian leaders hosted by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.

Haniyeh was last in Lebanon in 1993, after Israel banished 415 Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists to Lebanon for a period of one and a half to two years. The exile was eventually shortened after pressure from the Clinton administration and debate within Israel over whether the action was legal.

The United Nations Security Council also condemned the mass deportation at the time, calling it a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

— Aaron Boxerman