Gunmen open fire on Orthodox church in Hama

Unidentified gunmen opened fire on an Orthodox church in Hama, Syria on 18 December. Nobody was hurt in the incident, which caused minor damage to the walls.

Security forces moved quickly to secure the scene and the culprits were arrested on the following morning of 19 December. The Bishop of Hama issued a statement confirming the incident and the quick response of the local authorities.

In a separate incident in the days following the fall of the Assad regime, a cemetery in the Christian town of Mhareh near Hama was vandalised. The local authorities moved quickly and condemned the incident and vowed to arrest the perpetrators and hold them accountable.

In another incident, a person claiming to be a member of the Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) security entered a bar in a Christian neighbourhood in Damascus and attempted to intimidate the owner for serving alcohol. When confronted and asked to show his ID, he tried to run away but was quickly arrested and identified as a former member of a paramilitary group loyal to Assad.

Ayman Abdelnour of the Syrian Christian Advisory Forum said: ‘We strongly condemn these attacks and commend the quick and swift response of security forces and the reassurances given to religious communities by the new interim government. We recognise the legitimate concerns and we are monitoring the situation very closely. We will continue to work with other parties to move towards a new democratic and inclusive system.’

Jamil Diarbakerli, of the same group and also director of the Assyrian Monitor for Human Rights, said: ‘We are reassured by the response and messaging of the new interim government. We have to be vigilant as it is still early days and there are criminal groups and others loyal to the former dictator who might be trying to spread fear and instability.’

On 27 November a coalition of anti-Assad rebel groups launched a surprised attack and managed to take the northern city of Aleppo, the second largest city in Syria. They swept south very quickly and took the cities of Hama and Homs within a few days, causing Assad’s army to retreat. They reached Damascus on 8 December, forcing Assad to flee to Moscow and marking the end of 54 years of tyranny.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘CSW continues to monitor the situation in Syria very closely. We urge the new interim government to listen to the concerns and demands of the Syrian people who fought hard for their freedom, and ultimately to bring peace, reconciliation and prosperity to the country. We also call on the international community to engage with the new interim government positively, whilst maintaining essential scrutiny on what remains a highly volatile situation.’

Note to Editors:

1. The Syrian Christian Advisory Forum is a group of Syrian Christian politicians, civil society and activists, based inside and outside Syria, working to promote democracy, inclusiveness and equality of citizenship.