US official defends Syria raid

A White House official has defended Sunday’s military raid in Syria that Damascus says left eight civilians dead.

The un-named source is quoted by the Reuters news agency as saying the operation succesfully eliminated a major smuggler of foreign fighters across the Syria-Iraq border.

The raid left Syria furious. Walid Mouallem, the country’s foreign minister said:

“We consider this a criminal and terrorist aggression, and we put the responsibilty on the American government.”

Washington has often criticised Syria for failing to stop militants crossing into Iraq to fight US and Iraqi troops.

Mouallem said four US helicopters flew a dozen kilometers into Syrian airspace on Sunday, attacking a farm and killing eight unarmed civilians including four children.

US officials have declined to give any details of the operation.

Damascus says the raid was a deliberate message from the US that it doesn’t want better relations, at a time when ties between Syria and European countries are improving.

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