Turkey-Syria War Against Interests Of Muslim Ummah : Iran

Tehran, Oct 6, IRNA – Worsening of Turkey and Syria conflict is against the interests of Muslim Ummah and will only benefit the US, Iran's Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Firouzabadi said here on Friday. “This war is what the US wants to take place and the officials of the two countries should move towards non-interference in each other’s affairs in order to see peace on the borders,” He continued that war cannot make up for the two countries' mistakes and will only cause both Syria and Turkey to face big challenges. The Iranian commander expressed hope that the Turkish and Syrian officials would successfully weather this critical juncture as no one wants to see war between two Muslim states. “There is always opportunity for dialogue, but the flames of war burn all such opportunities,” Firouzabadi noted. Several Syrian soldiers, whose exact number has not been announced, were reportedly killed in an attack by Turkish forces on a military post near the border town of Tel Abyad early on Thursday. Turkey’s attack follows a Syrian mortar strike that killed five people and wounded at least 10 others in the southeastern Turkish town of Akcakale in Sanliurfa Province on Wednesday. Syria said it had started an investigation into the cause of the mortar attack on the Turkish territory. Syrian Information Minister Omran Zoabi sent a message of condolence to the Turkish people and families of the victims on Wednesday, stating that Damascus respects the sovereignty of its neighbors and wants its own sovereignty to be respected in return. In case of Syria crisis, it should be noted that Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country. Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes. The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad. In October 2011, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of increasing unrest in Syria./end