Iran Warns Syria Arab Suspension May Cause Civil War

The decision of the Arab League to suspend Syria is "a historic mistake" and will cause civil war in the unrest-hit country, an Iranian official said Friday, Anatolia news agency reported.

"The path the Arab League has taken is completely about defeating Syria from inside, and triggering a civil war," Anatolia quoted Alaaddin Burucerdi, the head of the Iranian parliamentary commission on foreign policy, as saying.

"It was a historic mistake to freeze Syria's membership in the Arab League," Burucerdi said at a press conference in his country's embassy in Ankara.

Burucerdi added that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should continue his reforms, as the best solution to stop the unrest in the country.

The 22-member Arab League voted at an extraordinary meeting in Cairo on Saturday to suspend Syria until Assad implements an Arab deal to end the crackdown, which has left at least 3,500 people dead since March according to U.N. figures.