IRAN HAS criticised the Arab League for allowing an opposition leader to fill Syrias vacant seat at the organisations annual summit and described it as dangerous behaviour.
With Syrian membership to the Arab League suspended in November 2011, the seat at the summit in the Qatari capital was filled by Moaz al Khatib, the leading figure among Syrias opposition coalition that is battling to overthrow president Bashar al Assad.
Shiite Iran has given crucial backing to Assad since the protests erupted in Syria in 2011.
Tehran regards him as a key player in the axis of resistance against Israel and a bulwark against what it believes are extremist Sunni groups operating within Syria.
Assigning Syrias seat to the Arab League to those who dont have the backing of the people establishes a pattern of dangerous behaviour for the Arab world that can set a new precedent for other members of the Arab League in the future, said deputy foreign minister Hossein Amir Abdullahian in a statement reported by Irans Student News Agency.
These actions will bring an end to the organisations role in the region, he was quoted as saying.
At the summit, Khatib who last month announced his resignation (see page 12) - asked US secretary of state John Kerry for American forces to help defend rebel-controlled northern parts of Syria with Patriot surface-to-air missiles based in Turkey. Nato swiftly rebuffed the idea.
The summit also endorsed the provision of military aid to Syrian rebels.
