October 29, 2008	Wednesday	Shawwal 29, 1429

BAGHDAD, Oct 28: Iraq on Tuesday slammed a deadly American helicopter raid on a Syrian border village on Sunday, an assault a US official in Washington said had targeted a prominent militant.

Syria, however, had said the eight people killed in the assault were all civilians, including children, and it had branded the raid — the first confirmed US action of its kind inside Syrian territory — a “terrorist” act.

“The Iraqi government rejects the US helicopter strike on Syrian territory, considering that Iraq’s constitution does not allow its land to be a base for launching attacks on neighbouring countries,” Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement.“We call upon American forces not to repeat such activities and Baghdad has launched an investigation into the strike.”

Mr Dabbagh said the raid targeted a border area used by insurgents to launch attacks against Iraq, and on Tuesday he urged Syria to prevent groups from using its territory “for training and sending terrorists for attacks on Iraq and its people.”

Iraq’s parliament said in a statement it had asked the cabinet to “keep it and the Syrian brothers informed about the investigation launched by the government into the raid. It regrets that the operation took place at a time when relations between Iraq and its neighbours are progressing.”—AFP