Syria says US government guilty of terrorism
Syria warns US of repercussions over raid within its territory that killed eight civilians
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Monday, 27, Oct 2008 08:19
Syria has likened a deadly United States raid within its territory to a terrorist attack and condemned the action as a "war crime".
Eight civilians died in what is thought to be America's first-ever raid on Syrian soil when soldiers attacked a house 8km from the Iraqi border last night.
Speaking at a press conference in London, Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Muallem said the US soldiers had behaved as "terrorists".
Mr al-Muallem, who had been due to appear alongside his British counterpart David Miliband, said the attack was not a mistake as it had taken place in daylight.
"We consider this criminal and terrorist aggression with the responsibility on the American government," the former ambassador to the US said.
"[The Americans] need to investigate this and return to us with the result and explanation for why they did this."
Mr Miliband pulled out of the planned joint press conference as it would have been inappropriate to face questions over an illegal attack from its biggest ally in Iraq.
A woman and children are among the dead, Syrian news agencies said, with the male victims all said to be construction workers.
According to official news agency Sana, four helicopters dropped off American soldiers in the village of al-Sukkiraya, close to the town of Abu Kamal.
Eight soldiers entered the house of Daoud Mohammad al-Abdullah before flying back into Iraqi airspace.
"Four American helicopters violated Syrian airspace around 16:45 local time (13:45 GMT) on Sunday," Sana said.
The dead are said to include Mr al-Abdullah and his four sons.
Washington has not officially commented on the reports of the attack but sources have indicated it was targeting suspected al-Qaida fighters travelling through Syria.
On Monday the Syrian government condemned the "serious aggression" of US soldiers.
"Syria condemns this aggression and holds the American forces responsible for this aggression and all its repercussions," a statement said.
Damascus called on the Iraqi authorities to prevent the US from using its territory as a staging ground for cross-border raids.
Senior diplomats from both Iraq and the US have already been summoned over the attack.