Iran’s Relations with Palestine: Past, Present, Future

Seyed Ali Alavi

Seyed Ali Alavi is a Teaching Fellow in the Department of Politics and International Studies at SOAS, University of London. He holds a PhD in Politics from SOAS. Alavi’s single authored book Iran and Palestine, Past, Present, Future was published by Routledge in 2019. Alavi also writes and comments about contemporary politics of the Middle East and Europe and he has appeared in a number of interviews by Euronews, Al-Jazeera English, RT, LBC Radio, Radio Four and other outlets.

Abstract

This study examines relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and progressive as well as Islamic Palestinian national liberation movements, from the onset of Palestinian dispossession. Providing historical background to Iran’s post-revolutionary period, we track the genealogy of pro-Palestinian sentiment prior to the Iranian 1979 revolution and until after the Arab Spring.

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The study focuses on the roots of an ideological outlook and interests of the post-revolutionary Iranian state in embracing the Palestinian cause. We explore the interconnections of Islamic Republic with the Palestinian Islamic Movements of Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Notwithstanding the growing body of literature on the regional impact of the Iranian Revolution, Iran’s connections with Palestine have often remained overlooked.
This research is a summary of the book Iran and Palestine, Past Present, Future (Routledge, 2019) which sought to fill academic gaps and “unpack” the relationship’s history in the shared quest for justice, rooted in solidarity.

Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies