By Ladane Nasseri - 2012-08-05T09:52:07Z
Iran called on Turkey and Qatar, two countries that have backed the Syrian opposition, to help free several dozen Iranian pilgrims kidnapped by gunmen near Damascus.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi urged his Turkish and Qatari counterparts to do their “utmost” to help release the pilgrims, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Iran’s state-run Press TV said 48 pilgrims were abducted.
The pilgrims were on a bus from Damascus airport to a Shiite shrine outside the capital when they were abducted, according to Press TV. The kidnapping took place as forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have been battling rebels in the capital and the largest city, Aleppo.
Shiite-led Iran has been one of the few regional allies of Assad’s government, which is dominated by officials from the Alawite sect, affiliated with Shiite Islam. Turkey and Qatar, two largely Sunni Muslim states, have backed the rebels, who are largely drawn from the Sunni majority.
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi dismissed reports that his country sent military forces to Syria to help Assad’s government, the Tehran Times said. Iran hasn’t dispatched any soldiers and the Syrian government hasn’t asked Iran to do so, Vahidi said at a press conference in Tehran, according to the newspaper.
Syria’s government has accused Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey of backing the rebels with funds and weapons.
Syrian forces killed 127 people yesterday, Al Jazeera reported, citing the opposition Syrian Network for Human Rights. The government shelled areas of Aleppo and Damascus and clashed with rebels around the country, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in an e-mailed statement.
The Syrian military was using artillery and helicopter gunships to attack rebels in Aleppo, with clashes reported around the city’s television and radio stations, Al-Jazeera reported. Rebels seized six neighborhoods in Aleppo, Al Jazeera said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ladane Nasseri in Dubai at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at [email protected]
Iran called on Turkey and Qatar, two countries that have backed the Syrian opposition, to help free several dozen Iranian pilgrims kidnapped by gunmen near Damascus.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi urged his Turkish and Qatari counterparts to do their “utmost” to help release the pilgrims, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Iran’s state-run Press TV said 48 pilgrims were abducted.
The pilgrims were on a bus from Damascus airport to a Shiite shrine outside the capital when they were abducted, according to Press TV. The kidnapping took place as forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have been battling rebels in the capital and the largest city, Aleppo.
Shiite-led Iran has been one of the few regional allies of Assad’s government, which is dominated by officials from the Alawite sect, affiliated with Shiite Islam. Turkey and Qatar, two largely Sunni Muslim states, have backed the rebels, who are largely drawn from the Sunni majority.
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi dismissed reports that his country sent military forces to Syria to help Assad’s government, the Tehran Times said. Iran hasn’t dispatched any soldiers and the Syrian government hasn’t asked Iran to do so, Vahidi said at a press conference in Tehran, according to the newspaper.
Syria’s government has accused Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey of backing the rebels with funds and weapons.
Syrian forces killed 127 people yesterday, Al Jazeera reported, citing the opposition Syrian Network for Human Rights. The government shelled areas of Aleppo and Damascus and clashed with rebels around the country, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in an e-mailed statement.
The Syrian military was using artillery and helicopter gunships to attack rebels in Aleppo, with clashes reported around the city’s television and radio stations, Al-Jazeera reported. Rebels seized six neighborhoods in Aleppo, Al Jazeera said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ladane Nasseri in Dubai at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at [email protected]