Latest news with #Alawites
Shafaq News
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Alawite women targeted in post-Assad chaos
Shafaq News - Damascus The aftermath of Bashar al-Assad's ousting has unleashed a new wave of violence in Syria—this time targeting women of his own sect. Reuters reported that at least 33 Alawite women and girls, ages 16 to 39, have gone missing in 2025 alone, amid the unraveling security situation in al-Assad's coastal strongholds. "Don't wait for her," a chilling voice told the family of 29-year-old Abeer Suleiman, who vanished on May 21 in Safita. Days later, her family received WhatsApp calls demanding $15,000 for her release, warning she would be killed or trafficked if the ransom wasn't paid. Suleiman later managed to say, 'I am not in Syria… all the accents around me are strange,' in a recorded call traced to an Iraqi number. This is not an isolated case. These abductions, which exclusively target Alawite women, coincide with escalating reprisals against the community after al-Assad's fall in December. Armed factions aligned with the transitional government have reportedly killed hundreds of Alawites in the coastal regions since March. Despite widespread online pleas from victims' families, no comparable patterns of disappearances have been reported among other sects. The UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria is now formally investigating the wave of abductions. The rising trend has spotlighted the vulnerability of minority communities during regime transitions and raised urgent questions about state accountability, regional trafficking networks, and sectarian vengeance.
Gulf Insider
a day ago
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Offshoot Of Syria's Ruling HTS Claims Credit For Damascus Church Bombing
On Sunday, a massive suicide bomb attack tore through the important Greek Orthodox church Mar Elias in Damascus, killing 27 and wounding dozens more. The huge attack just added to the spate of sectarian violence across Syria, which undercuts the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government's claim to be protecting religious minorities. The HTS was quick to blame ISIS for the Mar Elias bombing, and on Monday announced the arrest of a number of ISIS associates who they claimed were involved, vowing to bring them to justice. Now that whole narrative seems in doubt. ISIS never took credit for the Mar Elias bombing, which, since it was the biggest attack in Damascus in a very long time, would be an unusual oversight. Now, another group, Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah (SAAS), issued its own statement claiming credit for the attack. SAAS, which was said to be formed in February, went on to say that the government's claims of arresting people involved with the attack were 'untrue, fabricated.' The group is being presented as an ISIS splinter group by some reports, but the reality is substantially different. SAAS does indeed have some ISIS defectors within, according to reports, but it also has a substantial number of HTS defectors. SAAS founder Abu Aisha al-Shami was an HTS member, and said he broke away and formed his own group because he perceived HTS as being too soft on Shi'ites and other 'rejectionists.' While HTS has undergone a massive reformation in its presentation in the media, the group was a renamed al-Qaeda affiliate that retains its deeply Salafist ideologies. After a brutal, religiously motivated terrorist attack on Christians in Syria, the EU remains silent. Brussels usually reacts within minutes when it comes to other parts of the world, like Ukraine. This double standard is outrageous, and the lack of condemnation is unacceptable. — Péter Szijjártó (@FM_Szijjarto) June 23, 2025 While playing nice with religious minorities in Syria on paper, they've tended to turn a blind eye to attacks on them, notably the massacre of the Alawites, where well over 1,300 Alawites were killed in March, many by security forces. Those killings continue to this day, and the promised investigation never seemed to go anywhere. Speaking of Alawites, SAAS played a part in these massacres as well. The group regularly brags of carrying out attacks on Alawites and Druze Syrians, including what they called the 'Harvest of Ramadan,' where they listed attacks and vandalism done during the holiday on the Alawite town of Qardaha. That they would be behind the Mar Elias attack is not out of keeping with the way the group has operated in its brief existence. It provides a messaging problem for the HTS though, since the government has not done much about the SAAS at all since it came into existence. The Orthodox Christian leader in Syria has called out the Jolani regime: My respect for His Beatitude Patriarch John X Yazigi has grown tenfold after his historic speech from Damascus openly criticizing the Julani no mistake: the regime will try to harm you see the incitement—calling him an 'Assad regime remnant' or accusing… — Kevork Almassian (@KevorkAlmassian) June 26, 2025 Syrian Christian leader Patriarch John X. Yazigi issued a statement after the attack criticizing the government for its inability to protect religious minorities, saying 'condolences are not enough for us' and that the government has a fundamental duty to protect all its citizens. For now, though, that has begun and ended with blaming ISIS to justify ongoing operations against ISIS in the east.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Attack on Christians threatens Syria's postwar cohesion
Representative Image (AI-generated) In an official statement issued immediately after a suicide bomber opened fire on worshippers before blowing himself up at a Christian church in Damascus, Syria's government called the attack a desperate attempt to undermine national coexistence and destabilize the country. The Interior Ministry blamed the so-called " Islamic State " group for the attack, which killed 25 people and injured 63. In neighboring Lebanon, President Joseph Aoun called for "necessary measures to prevent its recurrence, provide protection for places of worship and their visitors, and ensure the safety of all Syrian citizens, regardless of their religion, as the unity of the Syrian people remains the foundation for preventing discord." Leaders of the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land in Jerusalem said: "There is no justification — religious, moral, or rational — for the slaughter of innocents, least of all in a sacred space. Such violence under the guise of faith is a grave perversion of all that is holy." 'Repeated violence': Michael Bauer, the head of the Beirut office of Germany's Konrad Adenauer Foundation, told DW that the attack did not just target the worshippers at the church, nor Christians broadly, but was meant to send a message. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo "There has been repeated violence against religious minorities in recent months, such as the Alawites and the Druze," said Bauer, whose foundation is closely linked to Germany's conservative Christian Democrats. "The latest attack, as terrible as it is, is therefore not directed solely against Christians, but against the social fabric of the entire country as well as the transition process," Bauer said. Sidra, a 20-year-old Christian in Damascus who asked that her full name not be used, told DW that she knew multiple victims of Sunday's attack. "My mother's condition is somewhat stable," Sidra said, "but I lost my friend in the incident." She said officials must act. "We send a message to the Syrian government to provide us with safety because, if the situation remains as it is, Syrian Christians may no longer be able to live under such conditions," Sidra said. "If safety is not ensured, Christians in Syria may rise against this government." Building representative government: President Ahmad al-Sharaa has promised an inclusive government. Bauer said he and his officials would likely be aware that Syria needs a fundamental transformation process that encompasses all population groups. Members of the many militias who have become officials or agents of Syria's security forces may see things differently, however, Bauer said. "They rather want to impose their own worldview, which doesn't include Alawites, Christians, Druze or other infidels in the new Syria," he said. "This poses a major challenge," he added. Since the overthrow of the government at the end of 2024, foreign fighters who joined the revolutionary forces in Syria's long civil war have been repeatedly accused of violence against minorities. However, the underfunded government has had difficulty developing security forces. The Germany Trade and Invest business information service estimates that Syria's economy will continue to shrink in 2025, for the third year in a row. Before the war began in 2011, Christians made up about 7% of Syria's population. Nearly a decade and a half of departures have reduced the proportion to about 2%, according to a report by Vatican News. Nawal, a 58-year-old who was injured in Sunday's attack and asked that her full name not be used, told DW that the violence would ultimately affect all Syrians. "We are one people, Christians, Muslims and people of all religions and denominations," Nawal said. "And whoever committed this act — this time it hit Christians, but tomorrow it will hit every other Syrian." Syria: Multireligious, multiethnic: Though there are predominantly Christian neighborhoods in Damascus and villages throughout the country, Bauer said adherents are widely integrated with Syria's other religious communities. "Christians are also present throughout very different parts of the country," Bauer said. "Unlike the Druze, for example, they live side by side with citizens of other religions. And of course, this has also created a certain sense of closeness." "Syriais our country," Sidra said. "We will stay if there are no sectarian provocations or insults to other beliefs," she added. "But what happened on Sunday in the church confirms the presence of sectarianism," Sidra said, "and such acts make us wonder if we need to leave Syria one day."
Qatar Tribune
4 days ago
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Group claims responsibility for Syrian church bombing
DamascuscTypeface:> A little-known group, Saraya Ansar al-Sunna (Brigade of Sunni Supporters), claimed responsibility on Tuesday for the deadly suicide bombing that struck a church in the south of Damascus, killing at least 25 worshippers and injuring 63. In a statement released on its social media platforms, the group claimed the assault was retaliation for what it described as 'provocations by Christians in Damascus.' It threatened further attacks, including suicide operations. Previously, the group had issued sectarian threats targeting Christians, Alawites, Druze and Shiite Muslims. It has claimed responsibility for a February attack on the village of Arzeh in Hama province and has threatened individuals linked to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (DPA)
Kuwait Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Kuwait Times
‘Why us?' Syrian Christians ask after suicide bombing
DAMASCUS: Relatives and friends mourn with members of the Bechara family who lost several members a day earlier in the suicide attack at the Saint Elias church in Damascus' Dwelaa area, during their funeral on June 23, 2025. - AFP DAMASCUS: Syrian Christians were struggling on Monday to understand why their community was targeted in a suicide attack and whether they can rely on the Islamist-led government's assurances of protection. Syria's health ministry said the toll from Sunday's attack on the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood had risen to 25 dead and more than 60 wounded. The interior ministry said the suicide bomber was a member of Islamic State who entered the church, opened fire and detonated an explosive vest. There was no claim of responsibility by the Islamic State group. On Monday, funeral announcements were posted on the door of the church. Members of the security forces stood outside it and other churches. 'I wonder why they target us. We had no interest in any of the events that happened in our country. We have no interests besides Syria living in peace,' said Bassim Khoury, a Christian resident of Damascus. 'We did not carry weapons, we did not stand against anyone. We did not ask for government positions. None of us wants to become president, no one wants to run the government... Why would this happen to this peaceful people?' The attack fed fears among Syria's minorities that their communities are more exposed to attacks and harassment since Islamist-led rebels toppled former leader Bashar al-Assad in December. In March, hundreds of Alawites - the minority from which Assad hails - were killed in Syria's coastal provinces and dozens were kidnapped and killed in Damascus. In May, an armed raid on a Damascus nightclub and the killing of a woman at another venue led some bars to close. Christian residents of Damascus told Reuters that Muslim sheikhs had come to their neighborhoods in the last six months to urge them to convert to Islam and to stop consuming alcohol. The violence has prompted questions about whether Syria's new rulers have full control over armed elements despite promises by Interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa - formerly a member of Al-Qaeda - to rule inclusively for all of the diverse religious and ethnic groups. 'We're in a country that must protect everyone,' said Jean Bahri, another Christian resident of Damascus. Nibras Youssef, from Dweila, said people has already been on edge over the security situation, in which armed men and boys who said they were official security force members produced no relevant identification papers. 'You see a 13-year-old holding a weapon and you cannot say anything to them,' said Youssef. Sharaa expressed his condolences, calling Sunday's attack a 'criminal bombing that hurt the whole Syrian people'. Several Syrian ministers, as well as church leaders and other foreign officials, condemned the attacks. Candlelit vigils and church services were held elsewhere in Syria in solidarity with the parishioners at Mar Elias. — Reuters
