India voices concern at Oct 26 US attack on Syrian village

New Delhi, Nov 3 (UNI) India today expressed concern at the US air attack near Abu Kamal on the Syria-Iraq border on October 26 but called for ''decisive responses'' against terrorism.

An External Affars Ministry spokesman said while terror incidents warranted decisive responses, such actions defeated the very purpose of the intervention when innocent people got killed.

''India is concerned at the incident near Abu Kamal, eight km.

inside Syria on its border with Iraq,'' the spokesman said in response to a question.

Asserting that terrorism affected many nations across the world, he said the scourge must elicit decisive responses.

''The scourge of terrorism affects many nations across the world.

While this must elicit decisive responses, when such actions result in the death of innocent civilians, they defeat the very objective of the intervention,'' the spokesman said.

US military helicopters launched an air attack on Sukkariyeh Farm near Abu Kamal, eight km inside the Syrian border, on October 26 killing about 14 people.

The area is near the Iraqi border city of Qaim which has been a major crossing point for 'terrorists,' weapons and money coming into Iraq to fuel the Sunni insurgency.

The US said the raid targeted the head of the Syrian al-Qaida network operating in the country.

The US blames Syria for harbouring foreign fighters who enter Iraq through the porous Syrian border. Iraq says several fighters from Syria had entered the country recently, killing several Iraqi security personnel.

Syria described the US attack as an ''act of terrorism.'' Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the regional terrorist group allied to so-called 'core al-Qaeda' based in Pakistan, has operated across the Syria-Iraq border in recent years.

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