Local Editor

The Jordanian government said it was expelling Syria's ambassador to Amman, Bahjat Suleiman, after accusing the kingdom of abetting the West against Damascus, while Syria responded with barring Jordan's envoy on Monday.

Jordanian spokeswoman for the foreign ministry, Sabah Rafei, said through a statement that Suleiman had violated diplomatic protocol by posting repeated comments on social media that criticized Jordan and its Gulf allies.

Suleiman has accused Jordan in his posts of hosting terrorists sent to fight Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, and for providing a haven for hundreds of Syrian army defectors training them with Saudi assistance to return and join armed groups in Syria.

The Syrian ministry of foreign affairs denounced the decision to expel Suleiman, saying it is "unjustified," Syrian state media said.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday that, "In response to the Jordanian government's baseless decision to declare the Syrian ambassador to Amman persona non grata, the Syrian government has decided to declare the Jordanian charge d'affaires in Damascus persona non grata."

The move came a week before an election in Syria expected to keep President Bashar Assad in power.

Western media reports have repeatedly stated that Jordan is supporting armed groups operating in Syria.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team