TEHRAN, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that a staff member of the Iranian embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus has been killed by "terrorists."

In a statement, ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei extended condolences for the "martyrdom" of the embassy's staff member, who was killed on Dec. 15 after "terrorists" fired on his car.

The victim was identified as Seyyed Davood Bitaraf, Baghaei said, noting that Bitaraf's body had been "discovered, identified, and repatriated to Iran."

The spokesman highlighted the responsibility of Syria's transitional government to identify, prosecute, and punish the perpetrators of the "crime," stressing the Iranian Foreign Ministry was seriously pursuing the matter in an "appropriate" manner through diplomatic and international channels.

A militant alliance led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group waged a major military operation from northern Syria on Nov. 27, sweeping southwards through government-held areas and capturing Damascus within 12 days.

On Dec. 8, the Syrian militant groups stormed Iran's embassy in Damascus following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's government. Baghaei confirmed then that Iranian diplomats had vacated before the attack. Enditem

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