Xinhua Middle East news summary at 2200 GMT, April 14

TEHRAN -- Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday denounced the airstrikes on Syria launched by the U.S., Britain and France as a "crime."

"I overtly declare that the presidents of the United States and France and the prime minister of Britain have committed crimes (in Syria) and are criminals," Khamenei said in a meeting with Iranian officials and the ambassadors of Islamic states, reported khamenei.ir website, which is affiliated to the leader's office. (Iran-Syria-U.S. Attack)

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CAIRO -- At least eight Egyptian soldiers were killed and 15 others were wounded in a terror attack on a military camp in Central Sinai, the military said Saturday.

"A group of 14 militant terrorists, four of them wearing explosive belts, attempted to break into one of the armed forces camps in Central Sinai before the sunrise," said Tamer al-Refaay, the military spokesman, in a statement. (Egypt-Terror-Soldiers Killings)

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DAMASCUS -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Saturday that the U.S.-led attack on Syria reflects the "failure" of Western powers to achieve their goals in Syria after the defeat of the foreign-backed militants.

Assad made the remarks during a phone call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who called Assad after the U.S-led attack on Syria, the state news agency SANA reported. (Syria-Assad-U.S. Failure)

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ADEN, Yemen -- Eighteen inmates of the Yemen-based al-Qaida branch managed to escape from a prison controlled by the Shiite Houthi rebels in central province of al-Bayda on Saturday, a security official told Xinhua.

According to the security source, who asked to remain anonymous, the escape followed a rebellion that erupted inside the Political Security (Intelligence) prison controlled by Houthis in al-Bayda province. (Yemen-Al-Qaida-Prison) Enditem