The burning of a Christmas tree by gunmen in the Syrian city of Hama has fueled fears within the country’s Christian community that they will be attacked by Islamist factions under the new administration.
The overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s brutal regime by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an Islamist rebel group that was previously aligned with al-Qaeda, has raised anxiety about what the future holds for Christians and other groups. minorities in the country. .
HTS responded quickly to last night’s shocking videos, with a religious leader from the group telling residents that those who burned the tree were “not Syrians” and promising they would be punished.
“The tree will be restored and illuminated tomorrow morning,” he said, and local media reported that the work was completed as promised.
The parish priest of the majority-Christian town of Suqaylabiyah also reportedly said that the culprits were eight non-Syrian citizens who decided to set fire to the Christmas tree two days after lighting it.
Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Christian areas of Damascus overnight to protest the burning of the tree hours before Christmas Eve.
“We demand the rights of Christians,” protesters chanted as they marched through the Syrian capital toward the headquarters of the Orthodox Patriarchate, while many staged a sit-in at the city’s Mariamite Cathedral.
The protests come just over two weeks after an armed coalition toppled dictator Assad, who ruled the Sunni-majority country with an iron fist for 24 years, and his overthrow sparked a new period of uncertainty for Syrians.
The Christmas tree near the city of Hama was set on fire just two days after it was lit and hours before Christmas Eve
Reports indicated that eight gunmen were behind the fire, and HTS stated that they were “not Syrians.”
Hundreds gathered in Damascus for protests last night
Christians took to the streets in protest after the tree fire
Christian faithful organize a sit-in inside the Mariamite Church in Damascus in the early hours of December 24, 2024.
Assad, a member of the Alawite minority, publicly presented that his government promoted secularism and protected minorities, but in reality his regime’s brutal repressive measures affected all sectors of society, and members of the Christian, Muslim and Muslim communities. Other communities fled the country during the bloody civil war. war.
Despite the jubilation over his deposition, there is still widespread anxiety among Christians and other minority groups about what the new HTS-led administration will mean for their freedoms.
Last week, unidentified gunmen opened fire on an Orthodox church in Hama. No one was injured in the incident and the local bishop said authorities responded quickly, securing the scene and arresting those responsible.
In another incident, days after Assad’s fall, a cemetery in the Christian town of Mhareh, near Hama, was vandalized, according to Christian groups.
A protester who took to the streets of Damascus last night and identified himself as Georges, told AFP that he was protesting against “injustice against Christians.”
“If we are not allowed to live our Christian faith in our country, like we used to, then we no longer belong here,” he said.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the fighters who burned the tree were foreigners from the Islamist group Ansar al-Tawhid, which has links to Al Qaeda.
The HTS movement, rooted in Al-Qaeda and backed by Turkey, has vowed to protect minorities since its lightning offensive toppled Assad on Dec. 8 after years of stalemate.
The group’s leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, better known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohamed al-Jolani, has repeatedly stated that he will work to dissolve all factions and place them under the command of the Ministry of Defense.
However, there are fears that HTS will not be able to control all armed groups and that revenge attacks against Christian communities will occur, with those attacking them potentially claiming to support the old regime.
Authorities said the tree would be quickly restored and those responsible would be brought to justice.
Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Christian areas of Damascus early on December 24.
HTS began as a splinter group from Al Qaeda, but has worked for years to distance itself from its jihadist past.
It is currently listed as a terrorist organization by the UN, US, EU and UK, and Sharaa says it should now be removed from the list, insisting it is not a terrorist group and does not target civilians or areas civilians.
Sharaa denied that he wanted to turn Syria into a version of Afghanistan, saying the countries are very different, with Afghanistan being a “tribal society” and very different from diverse Syria.
She said she believed in women’s education and referred to the northwestern province of Idlib, controlled by rebels since 2011, where they have had “universities for more than eight years.”
Speaking to the BBC, she added: “I think the percentage of women in universities is over 60 per cent.”
He declined to comment on whether drinking alcohol would be allowed in the country.
Ahmed al-Sharaa addresses a crowd at the capital’s iconic Umayyad Mosque on December 8.
US special forces warned Syrian rebel fighters to “be prepared” weeks before Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) fighters launched the large-scale coup that toppled former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, as it was known. Assad (pictured in 2020) this week issued his first statement since he was overthrown by rebel groups and fled to Russia.
“There are a lot of things I just don’t have the right to talk about because they are legal issues,” he said.
‘There will be a Syrian committee of legal experts to draft a constitution. They will decide. And any ruler or president will have to respect the law.”
Sharaa also said he wanted to unite different religious groups and “not play into sectarian division.”
He added: ‘The Syrian population has lived together for thousands of years. Let’s dialogue and make sure everyone is represented.
‘The old regime always took advantage of sectarian divisions, but we will not. I believe that the revolution can contain everyone.”
HTS now aims to bring Syria under control, establish a transitional government and work to provide aid and services to civilians.