“Alawites to the grave and Christians to Beirut,” was a chant typically heard within the early days of the rebel in opposition to Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite, and his authorities.
Sadly, however maybe not surprisingly, such sentiments turned to bloodshed over the weekend when over a 1,000 individuals have been reportedly killed in sectarian violence in Latakia. Christians are believed to be among the many useless.
The outbreak of violence allegedly started when pro-Assad forces refused to undergo troops from HTS, the al-Qaeda offshoot which overthrew Assad and fashioned an interim authorities.
Greek Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox and Melkite Greek Catholic leaders issued a joint assertion condemning the violence: “Houses have been violated, their sanctity disregarded, and properties looted — scenes that starkly replicate the immense struggling endured by the Syrian individuals.
“The Christian Church buildings whereas strongly condemning any act that threatens civil peace, denounce and condemn the massacres concentrating on harmless civilians, and name for a right away finish to those horrific acts, which stand in stark opposition to all human and ethical values.
“The Church buildings additionally name for the swift creation of circumstances conducive to attaining nationwide reconciliation among the many Syrian individuals.
“They urge efforts to determine an surroundings that facilitates the transition to a state that respects all its residents and lays the muse for a society based mostly on equal citizenship and real partnership, free from the logic of vengeance and exclusion.”
The management of HTS has beforehand indicated that it’s going to shield the rights of minorities, reminiscent of Christians and Alawites, and early indicators advised they may really achieve this.
Now nonetheless there are severe issues about HTS and the position it might have performed on this weekend’s bloodbath. Of the 1,000 killed, no less than 745 have been civilians and it’s doable the loss of life toll is in actual fact considerably larger.
Accounts differ as to who precisely was behind the violence. BBC reviews point out that the killers have been presumably rogue supporters of the brand new regime and that the violence ceased when the safety companies turned as much as restore order.
They quoted one native who mentioned, “They have been strangers, I am unable to determine their identification or language, however they gave the impression to be Uzbek or Chechen.
“There have been additionally some Syrians with them however not from the official safety. Some civilians additionally have been amongst those that carried out the killing.”
Nonetheless different sources have claimed that HTS itself could be the perpetrator. A report by The European Conservative locations the blame squarely on HTC forces, who’re additionally accused of murdering particular person Christians within the days previous to the bloodbath.
One native Christian advised the publication, “We’re afraid that after they end with the Alawites, they’ll kill us en masse. After seeing the massacres yesterday, all individuals listed below are terrified.”
Since HTS took over in December there have been quite a few tales of Christians being harassed, arrested or pressured into following Islamic customs. It stays unclear how a lot of that is sanctioned by the federal government and the way a lot is fighters on the bottom taking issues into their very own fingers as a result of lack of central authority.
One different space of concern is the work on Syria’s new structure. Leaked data has advised that the primary article of the structure would require {that a} Muslim be president.
