Shells hit Damascus, Moqdad says Doha meeting 'a declaration of war'

A Syrian warplane bombed the rebel-held town of Ras al-Ain near the Turkish border for a third day on Wednesday, a Reuters witness said, rocking buildings on the frontier and sending up huge plumes of smoke.                 

Earlier this morning, areas in southern Damascus were shelled early at a time when fighter jets launched raids on northwestern town and villages, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.               

On another note, a shipment of graphite cylinders usable in a missile program and suspected to have come from North Korea was found in May aboard a Chinese ship en route to Syria in what appears to have been a violation of UN sanctions, diplomats said on Tuesday.                 

South Korean officials seized the shipment of 445 graphite cylinders, which had been declared as lead piping, from a Chinese vessel called the Xin Yan Tai, UN Security Council diplomats told Reuters on condition of anonymity.              

"Asahi Shimbun" widespread newspaper quoted diplomats who were informed of the US confidential report, as saying that South Korea confiscated 535 cylinders, disguised as lead pipes that would have no connection to ballistic missiles.               

On the other hand, the Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Moqdad said on Wednesday that the meeting held by the syrian opposition in Doha is a "declaration of war." He noted that the opposition does not seek to peacefully resolve the issue, while the regime is calling for a national dialogue aiming at finding a peaceful solution.                  

Positions:            

Damascus responded to the French President Francois Hollande's declaration that France recognizes the Syrian opposition coalition, quoting the deputy foreign minister as saying that this recognition is “unethical” and encourages the destruction of Syria.                

For his part, Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz, affirmed that the Turkish armed forces are ready to immediately respond to Syrian jets and helicopters' violation of the Turkish airspace.                  

However, Jordan announced its intention to build a third camp for the refugees in al-Ramtha, north of the Kingdom near the Syrian border.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is hoping to raise Moscow's profile in a region where its influence is at risk after blocking three U.N. resolutions meant to put pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to end the bloodshed.

"Lavrov has supported Egypt's regional quartet initiative, but the problem there is that the Saudis don't want to take part in a format that includes Iran. So he will be trying to convince them to change their minds," said Fyodor Lukyanov, editor of the magazine Russia in Global Affairs.               

Russia and Gulf Arab states have failed to agree on how to resolve 20 months of bloodshed in Syria after talks in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Wednesday, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jabr al-Thani said.
   
"We have spoken at length on the situation in Syria and how to find solutions," Sheikh Hamad told journalists after the talks.
   
"We have a point of view and our friends in Russia have a point of view and they did not converge," he added.
                      


REUTERS/LBCI

For the full report, please click on the VIDEO above.