Syrian church leaders call for an “immediate end” to the massacres in Syria during attacks that resulted in over 1,000 deaths, including some Christians.
In what some have called a revenge killing, Syrian security forces and affiliated gunmen slaughtered minorities residing mainly in the provinces of Tartus and Latakia in Syria’s coastal region. The security forces and gunmen, associated with terror group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) who recently overthrew Syria’s previous dictator Bashar al-Assad, targeted civilians after Assad-loyalists attacked al-Haffa’s government forces on March 6. The recent slaughtering stands as one of Syria’s deadliest incidents since HTS took over Syria in December. The attack mainly targeted the Alawites, a minority group in Syria.
Syrian church leaders issued a joint statement on March 8th, in which they described the nature of the attacks.
“In recent days, Syria has witnessed a dangerous escalation of violence, brutality, and killings, resulting in attacks on innocent civilians, including women and children,” the statement said. “Homes have been violated, their sanctity disregarded, and properties looted, scenes that starkly reflect the immense suffering endured by the Syrian people.”
Christians were reportedly killed among the weekend raid. One of them, Tony Khoury, was reportedly slaughtered in his home. He was killed on March 7th in the city of Latakia. According to social media posts, Khoury was originally from the village Dahr Safra, where the population is predominantly Maronites, a Syriac Christian group. Tony Boutros and his son, Fadi, Greek Christians residing in Syria, were also killed.
In an interview with Premier Christian News, Martin Parons, CEO of The Lindisfarne Centre for the Study of Christian Persecution, referred to a sermon conducted by a church leader in Damascus. The leader stated that Christians had been killed in the attack. Yet, he did not address whether Christians were specifically targeted in the attack. Nor did he mention the number of Christians killed.
“We need to be very cautious because all we know is that there appear to have been some Christians killed,” Parons said. “We don’t know why they were killed. Were they caught up in it? Were they killed because they were Assad loyalists, or was it a question of them being targeted because of their religion, or both? We just don’t know at the moment.”
An unnamed Christian in Syria said that Syrian Christians fear that the security forces and gunmen will conduct a massacre of Christians.
“We are afraid that after they finish with the Alawites, they will kill us en masse,” the Christian source told The European Conservative. “After seeing the massacres yesterday, all people here are terrified.”
The Christian population has severely dwindled over the past 10 years. Many have left due to targeted attacks, economic decline and fear of terrorist organizations, as reported by persecution.org. Christians are a minority in Syria, consisting of 2.4% of the population according to Open Doors. This accounts for some 579,000 Christians. However, Open Doors notes that these numbers were recorded before the new regime, and the current number may have changed. A U.S. Department of State report documented that 1.5 million Christians resided in Syria before the civil war.
Reacting to the recent attack, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged the HTS’s targeting of Christians and other minority groups.
“The United States condemns the radical Islamist terrorists, including foreign jihadis, that murdered people in western Syria in recent days,” Rubio wrote in a press statement. “The United States stands with Syria’s religious and ethnic minorities, including its Christian, Druze, Alawite, and Kurdish communities, and offers its condolences to the victims and their families. Syria’s interim authorities must hold the perpetrators of these massacres against Syria’s minority communities accountable.”
A journalist, who was recently detained by HTS forces, explained the persecution Christians are facing under the new regime in an interview with The European Conservative.
“The Muslim population, emboldened by HTS’ rise to power, has engaged in increasing levels of intimidation and violence against Christians,” reported the journalist, whose name was withheld for safety. “In the ‘Christian Valley’, villages were urged by the regime to surrender their weapons. They did so, believing that only the state should have the right to bear arms. However, this decision left them defenseless, making them an easy target. Now, with HTS in control, many Muslim villagers see an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Antiochian Greeks, who tend to be more educated and economically successful, are particularly vulnerable to extortion, land grabs and outright violence.”
The Syrian church leaders’ joint statement not only calls for an end of violence but also national reconciliation.
“The Christian churches, while strongly condemning any act that threatens civil peace, denounce and condemn the massacres targeting innocent civilians, and call for an immediate end to these horrific acts, which stand in stark opposition to all human and moral values,” the statement said. “The Churches also call for the swift creation of conditions conducive to achieving national reconciliation among the Syrian people.”
