As some 450,000 Christians have fled Syria since a civil war erupted two years ago, the Syrian Patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic church has called on Christians to stay in Syria and survive a “difficult” future.
"I say to my children, stay in your country, the future will
be difficult, but it will be better, God willing," Syrian
Patriarch Gregory Laham told AFP in an interview.
On the eve of a trip to the Vatican for meetings with Pope
Francis, Laham urged European countries to not "encourage
Syrian Christians to emigrate."
"I say to the European countries that want to help, help
people in difficulty, humanitarian cases but don't encourage
people to emigrate," he said.
According to the cleric, 450,000 Syrian Christians have been
forced from their homes by the civil strife that began in March
2011.
The religious leader said that between 1,000 and 1,200
Christians, both soldiers and civilians, had been killed.
Pope Francis also said the Catholic Church “will not resign”
itself to a Middle East without Christians.
"Syria, Iraq, Egypt and other areas of the Holy Land sometimes
overflow with tears," he said on Thursday, calling for
"the universal right to lead a dignified life and freely
practice one's own faith to be respected."
RT correspondent Paula Slier was in Syria, where she got a
firsthand look at the devastation suffered by dozens of Christian
churches.
After the murder of Father Bassilius Nassar in January 2012 by
rebels, threats and persecutions against Christians in Syria have
escalated to the level faced by Christians in Iraq, Slier
reports.
In August, the Christian town of Maaloula outside of Damascus was
attacked by rebels. Dozens of soldiers were killed and many
residents fled.
Patriarch Laham pointed out that Christians have not been the
only victims of the violence.
"Christians are not the only ones being targeted. All Syrians
are being targeted, Shiites and Sunnis and Druze and Christians
from all denominations."
He also mentioned that “at least 57 Christian sites” have
been damaged or destroyed since the beginning of hostilities, and
he blamed the United States and its Western allies for
aggravating the situation by providing assistance to the rebels.
“This is the church. Unfortunately, it was not like that before.
Look at this destruction and mess. From here the explosions were
coming down on people praying. Of course people started crying
out for help from us. The priest was right here and they were
captured right here in the church,” Syrian army soldier
Bassam Shaaban told RT’s Paula Slier.
Christians, who comprise about 10 percent of Syria's population,
are viewed as supporters of President Bashar Assad, fearing the
Islamist ideology of some rebels. This has made them the target
of attacks.
“I believe it is all systematic and planned,” Sami Housni, a
Christian priest in Damascus, told RT. “Forcing Christians to
leave… In Iraq, for instance, less than 200,000 Christians
remain. We do have concerns, we do hope to stick to our land –
Syria, which is the cradle of Christianity. We also hope that the
Pope and heads of Christian denominations shall call for
denouncing violence and adopting dialogue.”
The civil war between insurgent rebels and government forces
loyal to Assad has killed more than 120,000 people, according to
UN estimates, and displaced millions over the last two years.
The International Society for Human Rights says that four out of
every five acts of religious discrimination in the world today
are perpetrated against Christians. Nowhere is this more acutely
felt than in the Middle East and North Africa.
American think tank the Pew Forum says that Christians now face
harassment and oppression in more than 139 countries worldwide.