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               UN Envoy Asks Iran for Help with Syrian Cease-Fire

   by VOA News

   The United Nations-Arab League envoy for Syria has called for Iran's
   help in establishing a cease-fire during the upcoming Muslim holiday
   Eid al-Adha.
   Lakhdar Brahimi also underlined in a statement Monday that the crisis
   in Syria "was getting worse every day" and that there is an urgent need
   to stop the bloodshed.
   The statement followed meetings Sunday with Iranian leaders, including
   President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi.
   Eid al-Adha begins next week.
   Plane grounded
   Also Monday, Turkish authorities forced an Armenian plane bound for the
   Syrian city of Aleppo to land in order to inspect its cargo.  Turkish
   officials said the plane was carrying humanitarian aid and would be
   allowed to continue if nothing else is found.
   Relations between Turkey and Syria have grown more contentious, with
   both sides in recent days banning each other's passenger planes from
   their airspace and trading cross-border artillery fire earlier this
   month.
   Last week, Turkey intercepted a Syrian passenger plane en route from
   Moscow to Damascus and confiscated what they said were military
   supplies on board.
   Ankara has accused Damascus of using civilian airliners to bring in
   weapons for Syrian troops fighting a 19-month rebellion, and has vowed
   to prevent Turkish airspace from being used for such purposes.
   Refugees
   Also Monday, Turkey's disaster management agency said the country is
   now hosting more than 100,000 Syrian refugees in camps along the
   border.  Turkey has said it would struggle to accommodate any more than
   that.
   Turkey has been one of the main regional supporters of the Syrian
   rebels trying to end Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's 12-year rule.
   Turkish forces also fired artillery into Syria for several days this
   month in response to Syrian shells that landed on the Turkish side of
   the border and killed five Turkish civilians.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/un-envoy-asks-iran-for-help-with-syri
   an-cease-fire-/1526583.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/un-envoy-asks-iran-for-help-with-syrian-cease-fire-/1526583.html