MADRID:

October 9, 2003

Gulf Daily News

Syria said yesterday that Damascus would respond militarily if Israel were to go on raiding Syrian territory as it did on Sunday.

"If Israel attacks Syria one, two and three times, of course the people, government and the army will react to defend ourselves," said Mohsen Bilal, Syria's ambassador to Spain.

However, in Damascus, an official source said Bilal's remarks represented "his personal understanding" of the country's official stance while the official view - expressed in letters to the UN urging that Israel be condemned - was unchanged.

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