Damascus - Syria on Monday condemned a helicopter-borne commando raid on a remote border village by US forces in which it said eight civilians, including four children, were killed.

A government spokesman in Damascus added that the Iraqi government also bore responsibility for the incident.

According to the state-run news agency SANA, the eight victims included a married couple, their four children, and two men in the attack at the village on Sunday.

Last previous media reports in Damascus had put the death toll at nine, with 14 persons wounded. But those reports were never officially confirmed.

SANA said that the US charge d'affaires in Damascus was called in to the Syrian Foreign Ministry after the incident.

Washington - The United States has imposed sanctions on 13 companies accused of aiding the weapons programmes of North Korea, Iran or Syria, the State Department said Friday.

Baghdad - After a series of atrocities against Iraqi Christians in Mosul, around 400 Christians arrived in Syria to escape the harsh conditions of home, according to a statement by a Syrian refugee assistance organization Friday.

In the last few days, some 20 Christian families arrived in the city of Qamhley, which is close to the Syrian-Iraqi border, said Lauren Gul, a representative of the refugee assistance group.

Damascus - The Syrian government Thursday hailed a visit from the European Union's chief diplomat as a sign that its foreign policy is reaping successes.

"With the visit of (EU foreign policy chief Javier) Solana, Europe has truly and officially announced that it wants to open up to Syria," said Buthaina Shaaban, spokeswoman for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, after the meeting between the two men.

Shaaban went on to say that the EU's position was "only natural, given the positive and stable role that Syria is playing in the region."

Damascus - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana arrived in Syria late Wednesday, where he was received by the Syrian assistant foreign minister at Damascus airport.

Upon arrival, Solana said that his visit to Syria is a follow up to what has been achieved in the Syrian-European relations. He also expressed his satisfaction with the indirect negotiations between Syria and Israel.

Damascus - Damascus has called on Europe to be more politically engaged in the Middle East and to play a role that is parallel or complementary to the US role.

"The Europeans are able to play a more effective role in the Middle East and to make their political weight equal to their economic one," the official Syrian mouthpiece, Tishrin newspaper, wrote in its editorial on Wednesday.