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Egypt criticizes growing Iranian influence on Syria

An Egyptian diplomatic source has criticized the recent Iranian - Syrian summit in Damascus during the visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The source said the summit "was not in favor of Arabs," because it drags them into the growing conflict between Iran and the West.


The meeting in Damascus was attended by President Bashar al-Assad, Ahmadinejad and the Secretary-General of Hizbullah Hassan Nasrallah.


The Egyptian diplomat told the A-Sharq alAwsat daily that the summit sums up the deepening of Iranian influence on a major Arab nation. Regarding the messages sent by this meeting to the Arab world, he said: "The messages indicate that things do not go to reassure (Arab) countries that Syria is betting on giving priority to its interests with the Arab World in exchange of downgrading its links with Iran."