US embassy in Syria closes amid security threat

Damascus, 6 Feb. (AKI) - The United States embassy and its consulate in Damascus remained closed on Monday following what diplomatic sources said were threats made against Western diplomatic missions in Syria. The closure was described as a "preventive" action by the sources who did not say when the two offices would open again. The Danish embassy in Damascus was torched over the weekend in protest over the publication by a Danish newspaper of cartoons depicting the Prophet.

Also on Monday, France shut its cultural centre in the Syrian capital on account of the threats, but the French embassy remianed open.

Security around several embassies has been tightened, with a more police presiding the buildings and stricter controls on those entering the premises.

The US embassy closed its doors in 1998 and in 2000, when on both occassions anti-American demonstrators tried to enter the building.

Washington, which has described Syria as a "rogue state", accusing it of aiding terrorism, recalled its ambassador in Damascus in protest over Syrian policies in 2004 and has not sent him back.