ME first victims of Syria crisis: Iran FM

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has warned that Middle Eastern countries will be the “first victims” of extremism in Syria if the “tragedy” is not resolved through democratic means.

According to Press TV, Zarif said in a recent televised interview with Al Jazeera news network “Extremism in Syria will harm all of us. Extremism in Syria cannot be contained to Syria. Our friends in the region will be the first targets and victims of extremism as our friends in Pakistan were the first victims of Taliban extremism.”
He said “We all should work to end the violence, to bring about a political resolution to this tragedy that is a shame for both Sunnis and Shias. It is a shame for Islamic world. It is a shame for our region.”
The Iranian foreign minister pointed out “Trying to seek a military solution, either from within or trying to invite outsiders to intervene militarily in Syria will not resolve the problem. In fact there is no military solution to the tragedy in Syria.”
Zarif argued that the future of Syria can only be decided by the “Syrians and the Syrians alone,” adding, “What all of us can do, and I invite all our friends to do the same, is to help facilitate the dialogue among Syrians with a view to finding a political solution and with a view to ending the violence in Syria.”