CAIRO: The Egyptian Foreign Ministry is protesting demonstrations held in Syria over Egypt s role in the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The state-owned Middle East News Agency says Deputy Foreign Minister Abdel-Rahman Salah expressed concern about the demonstrations to the Syrian ambassador after summoning him to the ministry Tuesday.
The Syrian ambassador was summoned to express Egypt s concern at the raucous demonstrations which were organized around the premises of the Egyptian embassy in Damascus over the past two days, Salah told reporters.
The Syrian ambassador promised to convey this message to his government, added Salah.
The agency quotes Salah as describing the protesters as mobs.
Thousands of protesters, mostly Palestinian refugees, took part in demonstrations this week in Damascus demanding the closure be reversed.
Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade on Gaza after the Islamic group Hamas seized power last year, ousting the forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Egypt says the main motive for its policy on Gaza is to prevent the Israelis from escaping responsibility for the impoverished coastal strip. -Agencies
