Abbas Zaki, member of Fatah's Central Committee, sent an official letter of congratulation to Syrian President Bashir Assad expressing support for the Syrian people in its struggle against "the terrorist organizations and the Infidel and their supporters" and "in its dastardly struggle to destroy Syria."
Zaki's position is strongly criticized by opponents of the Syrian regime, who define the letter as a betrayal, and compare the letter to Arafat's support for Saddam Hussein's policy when he invaded Kuwait.
The MEMRI Institute, which reported on the letter and its effects, notes that "Zaki has been known as a supporter of the Assad regime almost since the beginning of the crisis in the country, and over the years he has visited Damascus several times as an emissary of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, among other things, in an attempt to solve the crisis in the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp."
In his letter, Zaki wrote to Assad: "I am happy to convey on my behalf and on behalf of my brothers in the Central Committee and the Revolutionary Council of the Fatah Movement, in your honor and the Syrian people, greetings and congratulations ... The Syrian people who outlined the path of heroism and sacrifice and fought French imperialism for decades ... can beat the terrorist organizations and the Infidel and all those who support them and help them.
"We emphasize that our Palestinian people stand resolutely at the side of the Syrian people in their struggle against the great plot aimed at destroying Syria, dividing it, and dispersing its people. We are certain that Syria will defeat the armed gangs thanks to the tremendous capabilities of its people and its brave army, and that security will return to it ... "
MEMRI researchers report that Syrian opposition members strongly criticized Abbas Zaki and claimed that the attack was a "betrayal" of the Syrian people and of Palestinian refugees in the Al-Yarmuk camp who were harmed by the siege and starvation policy adopted by the Syrian regime as part of its struggle against opposition elements.
"The Fatah movement ignored the crimes committed by Bashir Assad and his forces against the Syrian people and the Palestinian refugees in Syria," the Syrian opposition website Eldorar.com said in a report, calling them "betrayal of Syrian and Palestinian blood".
Syrian opposition leader Bassam Ja'ara wrote in his Twitter account: "It is only natural that the cheap mercenary Abbas Zaki, who sold the blood of the Palestinians in the [refugee] camp to the Yarmouk, would attack our people ..."
Senior Saudi journalist Daoud Al-Sherian published a strident article in the Saudi daily Al-Hayat in London in which he compared the support of the Palestinian leadership today of Bashir al-Asad to the PLO's support of Saddam Hussein during the occupation of Kuwait in 1990. According to him, the Palestinian leaders do not understand politics or the regional reality, and take a position that is not value-oriented, thereby increasing the political isolation of the Palestinians.