Twenty-nine diplomats, including the US military attache, were allowed on Saturday’s rare inspection of Syria’s side of the Tanaf border crossing, about 300 km northeast of the capital, Damascus.

They were then driven for some 200 km along the border marked by police outposts and tall sand barriers.
The United States and some Iraqi officials accuse Syria of not doing enough to stop foreign fighters from crossing into Iraq.

Syria says it has taken all necessary measures but that it is impossible to fully control the sprawling desert along the border.

Authorities have increased the number of outposts to one every 400 metres in some zones along the 570-km border, a Syrian officer said on Saturday, stating each outpost was staffed with a half-dozen soldiers.

‘No infiltration’

“There is no infiltration (into Iraq) here,” the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity with Syrian military regulations.

However, several Iraqis have been caught smuggling ammunition and tobacco into Syria, he said.
The Tanaf border crossing was a major gateway for Iraqis fleeing violence in their country following the 2003 US-led invasion and the ousting of Saddam Hussein.