Iran slams US strikes as ‘violation of Syria’s sovereignty, territorial integrity’

Iran has strongly denounced US airstrikes in eastern Syria, terming it the violation of the war-ravaged Arab country's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kan'ani, in a statement on Wednesday, described the latest American aggression in the eastern Syrian province of Dayr al-Zawr as a "terrorist act" against the people of Syria.

In the wee hours of Wednesday morning, American warplanes carried out fresh airstrikes in Dayr al-Zawr, only a few days after the US military used dozens of tanker trucks to smuggle crude oil from the neighboring province of Hasakah to bases in Iraq.

Kan'ani dismissed the claim, describing it as a "terrorist" act against the people of Syria and the popular anti-occupation groups in the country, and denying any link between the groups and the Islamic Republic.

Kan'ani said Washington's claim of fighting terrorism in the country was merely a ploy aimed at the continuation of the military occupation.

He asserted that the American troops' ongoing deployment to parts of Syrian soil contradicted international law and was an "occupation."

SS