Syrian Christians Protest Presence Of Foreign Jihadists After Christmas Display Burned

Starting Monday night and into Tuesday, large demonstrations broke out in Christian areas of Damascus and other parts of Syria over the continued presence of foreign jihadists in the country.

The ruling Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has vowed to protect the sizeable non-Muslim communities of Syria (Christians, Alawites, and Druze) following the overthrow of the secular-leaning President Assad and his Baath government, but deep fears have remained that an Islamic state based on Sharia law will emerge.

HTS Abu Mohammed al-Jolani is currently trying to appease Western and external backers by saying all the 'right things' in public—but Christians in particular are deeply fearful given that since the jihadist takeover of the country there have been several acts of anti-Christian vandalism and attacks.

Under the prior Assad government, Christians and others had a high degree of religious freedom. Churches would sound bells on special holidays, Christmas lights and decorations would be prominent in December, and special festivals would often take over entire streets and neighborhoods in celebration.

The pre-war Christian population was commonly estimated to be ten to twelve percent of the population, but since 2011 many have fled. Christians have also been killed or kidnapped over the years by Western and Gulf-backed militants, including priests and two bishops who were Christian leaders in Aleppo.

While Jolani is trying to send positive signals to the US government and others over the future of Syria's Christians, Church leaders and the people are not waiting around.

On Tuesday night Christian districts in and around Damascus as well parts of Hama countryside erupted in protest after the day prior armed men set fire to a large Christmas display in the Christian town of Suqaylabiyah, in Hama governate.

Below is a scene from one of the largest Christian areas of central Damascus Tuesday night:

"We demand the rights of Christians," the protesters chanted, many carrying crosses. Other slogans demanded a future role in the country for all Syrians, and that churches and the religious freedom of everyone must be protected.

A regional source has described the initial Christmas tree burning which outraged Syria's Christians as follows:

Video footage that circulated on social media on 23 December showed a large Christmas tree burning in Hama’s Suqaylabiyah – a Christian neighborhood. The tree was set ablaze on Monday by foreign militants under HTS’s command. Some reports said the militants were from Chechnya, while others said they were Uzbeki fighters.

HTS deployed a military official to the scene of the burning to condemn the incident and vow punishment for those responsible. 

"Protests led by Syrian Christians also took place in Sahnaya, Jaramana, Hama, and other areas of the country," the same outlet reported.

Church leaders remain on edge given that foreign militants control broad swathes of the countryside and are able to attack non-Muslims with impunity. HTS has also at times conducted acts of "intimidation" - for example by entering church services in Damascus while openly brandishing rifles.

Christians are telling HTS that if they are serious about governing, they must immediately kick the foreign jihadists out of the country. The black flags of ISIS have also been spotted in various parts of the country, and are sometimes even sported by HTS members themselves.

The foreign jihadists entered the country in the first place during the prior 13 years of war, often crossing into Syria from NATO-member Turkey and with the tacit support of the Western and Gulf anti-Assad alliance.

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For more on the history of Christians in Syria and persecution at the hands of fanatical militant groups during the past decade of war, see Syria Crucified...