US Embassy in Syria shut over demo threat
Damascus says eight civilians, including children, were killed in a
helicopter assault on Sunday launched by US troops from Iraq on a Syrian
village near the border
DAMASCUS: The US Embassy in Damascus said it will be closed on
Thursday because of the threat of demonstrations over a deadly American
helicopter raid on a village near the Iraqi border.
“Due to increased security concerns, the US Embassy will be closed on
Thursday, October 30, 2008,” it said on its website.
It said a demonstration was reportedly planned for Thursday in
downtown Damascus and “therefore, American citizens should avoid these
vicinities as well as the vicinity of the US embassy in Damascus.”
“In addition, the US Embassy will be closed on October 30 due to past
demonstrations which resulted in violence and significant damage to US
facilities and other embassies,” it said, adding that the American
school in the Syrian capital would also be temporarily closed.
Damascus says eight civilians, including children, were killed in a
helicopter assault on Sunday launched by US troops from Iraq on a Syrian
village near the border.
A US official in Washington has said the operation targeted a top
militant who smuggled arms and fighters into Iraq but officially the
State Department and Pentagon have declined to comment.
On Tuesday, Syria protested to the UN Security Council over what it
branded a barbaric action by the United States.
US commanders say Syria is the main transit point for foreign
jihadists crossing into Iraq and have blamed Damascus for turning a
blind eye to the problem.On Wednesday, Iraqi demonstrators gathered in
the Abu Rumaneh district near the Iraqi and US embassies, chanting
slogans condemning the helicopter raid and brandishing placards.
- Thursday, AFP
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