US sees Syrian violence spill over into Iraq

Violence in Syria is having a "very negative effect" on Iraq, the State department said Monday, as suicide bombers and arms flow into and out of the porous Iraq-Syrian border. "The situation in Syria has clearly fueled tensions in the region and foreign fighters, many of whom become suicide bombers, like some of the attacks we've seen in Iraq, are flowing into Syria and then many more of them are making their way into Iraq," State department spokeswoman Marie Harf explained to reporters. Iraq's Al Qaeda branch has reportedly merged with one of the most powerful Islamist rebel groups in Syria to form The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. The group now controls towns and villages in both countries, with access to funds, weapons and recruits. Al Qaeda claimed responsibility last month for simultaneous raids on two Iraqi prisons and said more than 500 inmates had escaped in the brazen operation. During recent bilateral meetings in Washington, Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov agreed to hold, "as quickly as possible," the Geneva II conference to find a solution the Syrian crisis. Both officials agreed to look into furthering humanitarian assistance inside Syria, according to Harf. "But our goal is to move as quickly as possible when we can have a conference that has the best chance to succeed. We're not just having a conference to have a conference," she said. Meanwhile, Harf responded on recent commends by Kurdistan Regional President Massoud Barzani to defend Syrian Kurds under threat by Al-Qaeda, by urging Barzani and all groups to avoid "any actions that would exacerbate tensions and increase the risk of violence inside Syria and beyond its borders.