Syria expels Jordan's charge d'affaires

In retaliatory move, Syria Monday declared the Jordanian charge d'affaires in Damascus persona non grata, a statement said.

The foreign ministry said this was in retaliation for Jordan's "unwarranted" and "strange" decision to expel the Syrian ambassador in Amman, Xinhua reported citing the official SANA news agency.

SANA did not name the Jordanian diplomat.

The Jordanian decision does not reflect the fraternal relations between both peoples of Syria and Jordan, the ministry statement said.

Earlier Monday, Jordan declared Syrian Ambassador Bahjat Suleiman persona non grata and asked him to leave within 24 hours.

Jordanian foreign ministry spokeswoman Sabah Rafi was quoted by the official Petra news agency as saying that Amman's decision was made in response to Suleiman's "repeated abuses" against Jordan and its political leaders and institutions through his personal meetings, remarks to media and posts on social websites despite repeated warnings.

Jordan was the latest to expel a Syrian envoy from its territory, following the lead of most Arab and Western countries.

The Jordanian decision came just days ahead of the planned balloting for the Syrian presidential elections. Syrian voters overseas are scheduled to cast their ballots May 28; those inside the war-torn country are to vote June 3.