U.S. hails Syrian security handling with terror attack

The American charge d'affaires in Damascus Michael Corbin hailed on Tuesday the Syrian security handling of a terrorist attack against the U.S. embassy in Syria, the official SANA news agency reported.

Corbin expressed the gratitude in a telephone call with Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmed Arnous following the terrorist attack on the U.S. embassy which was foiled by the Syrian security forces.

The report also quoted a statement of the U.S. embassy as saying that "all U.S. staff and their families are okay" except that one security man at the embassy was wounded.

The wounded man has been sent to a hospital in Damascus and his condition was stable, it added.

The statement said that Interior Minister Bassam Abdul Majid held talks at the site of the attack with the U.S. charge d' affaires.

According to SANA, Majid said that this terrorist operation failed to achieve any of the aims while praising the role of anti- terror forces in thwarting the attack and their alertness to protect the nation and citizens.

The attack occurred at about 10:05 a.m. (0705 GMT) and intense gunfire were heard in a following gunbattle.

The district, where many foreign missions, vital security installations and houses of most senior Syrian government officials are located, were sealed off by security guards.

The report said that a terrorist group of four gunmen launched the attack using hand grenades and machine guns.

Syrian anti-terror forces exchanged fire with the attackers, killing three of them and wounding the fourth, SANA said.

A senior Chinese diplomat, political counsellor Li Hongyu, 41, was slightly injured by a flying shrapnel while he was standing on top of a garage within the Chinese embassy compound, which is located very close to the U.S. embassy.

At least 10 people, including the senior Chinese diplomat, were injured in the terrorist attack.

Source: Xinhua