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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Syria and Iran warn Saudis against sending troops, who would ‘return in wooden boxes’

A Syrian opposition fighter  who identified himself as Belattin Katumi, holds his gun Saturday near the Bab al-Salam border. (Bunyamin Aygun / Associated Press)
Patrick J. Mcdonnell

BEIRUT – Syrian officials and their Iranian allies Saturday warned Saudi Arabia to drop any plans to send troops in support of retreating Syrian rebels facing a potentially shattering defeat in the northern province of Aleppo.

At a news conference in Damascus, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem declared any foreign forces intervening against the government would not come out alive.

“Those who launch an aggression against Syria will return in wooden boxes, be they Saudis or Turks or anyone,” Moallem told reporters.

The fast-deteriorating state of Syrian rebel forces in the north has led to speculation that Saudi Arabia and its ally, Turkey, might boost aid to the insurgents or even dispatch forces to Syria.

On Thursday, Riyadh announced it would consider sending ground troops to assist a U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State militant group, a suggestion welcomed by the Obama administration.

But Syria and its allies view any such move as a hostile act aimed at the Syrian government, not the al-Qaida breakaway faction that controls territory in Syria and neighboring Iraq.

Russia, which has provided massive air power in recent months to help turn the war in Damascus’ favor, warned last week that Turkey may be preparing “an armed invasion” of Syria – a suggestion later dismissed as “laughable” by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey shares a more than 500-mile border with Syria.

Ankara, like Riyadh, is a major supporter of mostly Islamist rebel groups fighting to overturn the secular government of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

While he called the idea of Saudi intervention “far-fetched,” the Syrian foreign minister added “the craziness of the Saudi regime makes me believe that anything is possible.”

There was no immediate response from Saudi officials.