Iranian, Iraqi officials stress cooperation on Syrian crisis

High-ranking Iranian and Iraqi officials in a meeting in New York underlined the necessity for boosting the two countries' cooperation in finding a peaceful solution to the crisis in Syria. The issue was raised in a meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Irqi Vice-President Khazir al-Khazaie on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York on Wednesday. During the meeting, President Rouhani referred to the historical, cultural and religious common points between the two nations, and said there are even more potentials to expand mutual relations in cultural, political, economic and tourism areas. He expressed concern over the present situation in Syria, and said that terrorists have flocked in the region to fight the Syrian government. The Iranian president stressed the non-military and diplomatic solutions to the crisis in Syria, and said the evil phenomenon of terrorism could spread to other parts of the region in future if it is not uprooted now. President Rohani stressed that cooperation and coordination among regional countries were necessary to eradicate terrorism and extremism, and said that today the very same government which helped formation of terrorist groups are now suffering from them. He said a major area Iran and Iraq could focus on in their bilateral cooperation is the issue of Syria to develop a political solution to the crisis through interaction and exchange of views. 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. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots to topple President Bashar al-Assad, who is well known in the world for his anti-Israeli stances. Early in September, the US, Israel and France have adopted the rhetoric of war against Syria over allegations that the Syrian government was behind a recent chemical attack near Damascus. The call for military strike intensified after the militants operating inside Syria and the foreign-backed Syrian opposition claimed on August 21 that hundreds had been killed in a government chemical attack on militant strongholds in the Damascus suburbs of Ain Tarma, Zamalka and Jobar. The Syrian government has strongly denied the claim, accusing the militants of the attack.