Al-Muallim tells U.S. to reconsider attitude

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Muallim confirmed on the Wednesday that the Qatari Ambassador to Damascus left without informing the Syrian Foreign Ministry, and he urged France and the United States to reconsider their positions. Diplomats in the Syrian capital said that Qatar had withdrawn its ambassador to Syria and closed its embassy last week after the attacks on the embassy compound in the neighbourhood of Abu Rummana carried out by supporters of the Syrian President Bashar Al-Asad. Al-Muallim said in a lecture at the University of Damascus: "The Qatari Ambassador left Damascus without informing the Syrian Foreign Ministry.  Despite this we look forward to good relations with the State of Qatar regardless of what Al Jazeera is doing." Diplomatic pressure is mounting on Al-Asad after the outbreak of protests more than four months ago against his eleven year rule.  Al-Asad responded to the unprecedented threat to his rule by promising reforms and offering a national dialogue, coupling this with a severe campaign. Rights groups have said that around 1,400 people have been killed, and around ten times that number arrested. In response the Syrian authorities have blamed gunmen for killing more than 500 people from the police and the army. The United States and France are pushing to impose tougher sanctions on Syria, but Russia blocked the UN Security Council resolution, condemning the campaign.   The U.S. and French ambassadors in Damascus were at the heart of the successive events and tensions between the United States and France and Syria when they visited the restless city of Hama in early July. Ansar al-Assad, considers that their visit interfered in the internal affairs of the country, claiming that this is why the U.S. and French embassies were attacked.    Al-Muallim said: "We did not expel the American and French Ambassadors as an indicator of the desire for better relations with France and America.  Their countries should re-consider their attitudes towards Syria, and if it continues then we will follow a procedure to prevent them from moving more than 25 kilometres outside of Damascus."