West intervention in Syria will burn region,says Assad

In an interview with Britains Sunday Telegraph,Assad also said that outside intervention against his regime will cause another Afghanistan.

Western military intervention in Syria will lead to an earthquake that would burn the whole region, Syrian President Bashar Assad warned in remarks published Sunday,following growing calls from anti-regime protesters for a no-fly zone over the country.

In an interview with Britains Sunday Telegraph,Assad also said that outside intervention against his regime will cause another Afghanistan. The comments appeared to reflect the Syrian regimes increasing concern about foreign intervention in the countrys crisis after the recent death of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi,who was toppled by a popular uprising backed by NATO airstrikes.

Syrian opposition leaders have not called for an armed uprising like the one in Libya and have for the most part opposed foreign intervention. In addition,the US and its allies have shown little appetite for intervening in another Arab nation in turmoil.

But with the 7-month-old revolt against Assad stalemated,some Syrian protesters have begun calling for a no-fly zone over the country because of fears the regime might use its air force now that army defectors are becoming more active in fighting the security forces.

The unrest in Syria could send unsettling ripples through the region,as Damascus web of alliances extends to Lebanons powerful Hezbollah movement,the militant Palestinian Hamas and Irans Shiite theocracy.

Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the fault line,and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake, Assad said. Do you want to see another Afghanistan,or tens of Afghanistans? Any problem in Syria will burn the whole region. If the plan is to divide Syria,that is to divide the whole region, he said.

The uprising against Assad began during a wave of anti-government protests in the Arab world that toppled autocrats in Tunisia,Egypt and Libya.

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Assad said that Western countries are going to ratchet up the pressure,definitely. He was apparently referring to a wave of sanctions that were imposed by the European Union and the US.