Iraq has recalled its ambassador to Syria in the wake of last week’s bombings in the Iraqi capital Baghdad. At least 95 people were killed by the bombs and close to 600 injured.

Iraq claims the attacks were carried out by members of the Baath Party. This party, to which the former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein belonged, is now banned in Iraq. Following the ban, many of its members fled to Syria.

The Iraqi authorities have reproached Syria for offering shelter to rebels and are now demanding that it hand over two Baath Party leaders currently living there. They say Mohammed Younis al-Ahmed and Sattam Farhan were behind last week’s bombings.

Relations between Iraq and Syria, which were poor while Saddam Hussein was in power, began to improve after he was deposed in 2003. However, the current dispute has seen them worsen once again.

Flags of Iraq and Syria from Wikimedia Commons