Iran warns Syria strike would threaten regional stability

He said that an attack would not be in the interest of fanning violence

Any Western military action against Tehran-ally Syria would threaten the stability and security of the region, Iran's Defence Minister Hossein Dehqan warned today.

"In case of military action against Syria, the region's security and stability will be threatened," Dehqan told the official IRNA news agency.

"This definitely will not be in the interest of those fanning violence," the brigadier general said, referring to Western backers of rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Iran, the main regional ally of Assad, has increasingly warned in recent days against Western military intervention in Syria after suspected chemical weapons attacks outside Damascus last week,

Damascus and rebels groups fighting it have accused each other of carrying out the attacks, which are said to have killed hundreds.

Dehqan today also appeared to express doubt over a ground operation by the US.

"I believe the experience gathered with attacks and military presences in Iraq and Afghanistan will prevent America from committing another mistake and falling into another quagmire," he said.