The Kingdom cut the number of employees in the mission following the ongoing violence of Bashar Assad regime against the Syrian citizens, the source said, adding: “The violence has reached a point of threatening the lives of the diplomats in Syria.”
The source said the reduction of the number of Saudi diplomats working in Syria was necessitated by the dangerous situation and widespread violence. “The objective was to protect our diplomatic mission against risks and threats,” he said.
The source said the step was not a good choice but was imposed on the Kingdom by the growing risks in Syria. “The Kingdom may later take a decision to close its embassy in Damascus. It will not be the only country to do this as a number of other countries have already taken this decision,” he said.
The source reiterated that the Kingdom was keen not to subject its citizens or diplomats to any kind of danger especially that Syria has become a perilous spot where tens of people were killed every day. “The current situation and the increasing violence which has spread to many areas made it imperative for the Kingdom to take necessary precautions to protect its diplomats,” he said.
