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REGIME'S SHABIHAH ABDUCT CHRISTIAN PASTOR IN QATANA NEAR DAMASCUS; UNION OF FREE SYRIANS SAYS WE ARE PART OF THE SYRIAN REVOLUTION
Al-Sharq al-Awsat [The Middle East]
Oct 24 2012
London, UK
The Face book page of the "Al-Juljulah Coordination Committee of the
Syrian Revolution" managed by Christian activists have accused the
Syrian regime's shabihah of abducting Fadi Jamil Haddad, the pastor
of the Orthodox Church in the area of Qatana near Damascus. The Face
book page said: "The pastor was abducted after a Christian physician
had been abducted with the intention of fomenting discord between
Christians and Muslims".
The Face book page added: "The residents of Qatana gathered in the Mar
Elias Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch in the town of Qatana to condemn
the heinous criminal abduction perpetrated by the regime's shabihah and
the kidnapping of Fadi Jamil Haddad, the pastor of the Greek Orthodox
Church in Qatana, and his companions as they were on their way to pay
a ransom for the release of Dr Shadi Khuri who had been abducted by
Bashar's gangs". Meanwhile, the Facebook page of Christian clerics
posted a video clip showing the effects of the regime's artillery
shelling on the windows of the Church of St Mar Gewargis in the
village of Al-Ghasaniyah in the area of Jisr al-Shughur.
The day before yesterday [22 October], the Union of Free Christians
released a statement affirming that the Christians of Syria,
particularly in Aleppo, cling to the Syrian people's social fabric that
is resisting against the killing machine in Syria. The statement said:
"The Syrian people's revolt has been raging for about one year and
a half against the most vicious and murderous dictatorships. This
regime thought that the city of Aleppo was opposed to the revolution
until it shook its foundations. The regime met Aleppo's resistance
by destroying everything in it. It had claimed that Aleppo was loyal
to it. Later, the people of Aleppo were suddenly considered "gangs"
that should be killed and displaced and their homes destroyed as they
are pursued even in their places of displacement".
The Union of Free Christians in Aleppo added: "Since the eruption of
the revolution, the regime has been labelling Aleppo as a Salafi and
terrorist town in its attempts to fabricate fears of the revolution
among some components of the Syrian people. It tried to manipulate
the natural differences among these components, particularly the
Christians, in an attempt to isolate them from the revolution.
However, as the revolution takes major strides in its march to
overthrow the regime, broad sectors of Christians stand alongside
their people's revolt in various forms. Whenever the regime felt their
resistance was broadening, it would fabricate fresh illusions giving
the impression that it is still powerful. Its last such attempt was
demonstrated when it displayed the bodies which it said belonged
to the Free Syrian Army [FSA] -the regime is not above bringing
in hundreds of bodies of those that were liquidated every day in
its dungeons or the bodies of martyrs who fall as a result of the
shelling and destruction -in several Christian neighbourhoods where its
security centres are located. Most important of these locations is the
political security branch in the neighbourhood of Al-Sulaymaniyah that
has turned into a military garrison that reminds us of the barracks
of the occupation. The regime managed to recruit a small number from
the sons of these Christian neighbourhoods in a shameful celebration
that has nothing to do with the principles of Christianity, since
Christianity stands before death in reverence and not with dancing,
ululations, and pleasure".
The statement that coincided with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei
Lavrov's remark that "Al-Asad's regime is the protector of minorities
in the region," went on to say: "Over the past century to date,
the town of Aleppo has been the scene of brotherhood among its sons
that is unprecedented in the history of co-existence as it resisted
against the occupation and tyranny as well as in co-existence in the
scientific, cultural, and religious centres and in the markets and
the neighbourhoods. The regime and its security organs managed to
recruit a very small number of Christians in the ranks of what the
world has come to know as the shabihah. The regime exploited those
with criminal records or those suffering from hard living conditions
as well as ignorance. A few members of several Armenian sects were
also involved for political considerations".
The statement went on to say: "As free Christians, we proclaim that
the stands of these few on the side of the regime do not express the
stands of the Christians in Aleppo who are fed up with this regime
under whose rule Syria suffered from the biggest waves of migration.
The presence of Christians has dropped to its lowest levels as their
economic, political, cultural, and social role declines. This is
especially true of the Armenians whose history in Syria goes back
to more than 100 years when Syria provided them with refuge and the
highest forms of hospitality as they fled from persecution. Syria
became the homeland of the Armenians at a time when no one had heard
of the Al-Asad family".
The statement of the Union of Free Christians concluded: "As free
Christians, we consider ourselves part of the Syrian revolution and
participants in all its activities. We proclaim our condemnation
of all the manifestations of provocation fabricated by the security
organs of the regime and its executioners from the various sects.
Christianity is innocent of such manifestations".
[Translated from Arabic]
From: Baghdasarian
Al-Sharq al-Awsat [The Middle East]
Oct 24 2012
London, UK
The Face book page of the "Al-Juljulah Coordination Committee of the
Syrian Revolution" managed by Christian activists have accused the
Syrian regime's shabihah of abducting Fadi Jamil Haddad, the pastor
of the Orthodox Church in the area of Qatana near Damascus. The Face
book page said: "The pastor was abducted after a Christian physician
had been abducted with the intention of fomenting discord between
Christians and Muslims".
The Face book page added: "The residents of Qatana gathered in the Mar
Elias Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch in the town of Qatana to condemn
the heinous criminal abduction perpetrated by the regime's shabihah and
the kidnapping of Fadi Jamil Haddad, the pastor of the Greek Orthodox
Church in Qatana, and his companions as they were on their way to pay
a ransom for the release of Dr Shadi Khuri who had been abducted by
Bashar's gangs". Meanwhile, the Facebook page of Christian clerics
posted a video clip showing the effects of the regime's artillery
shelling on the windows of the Church of St Mar Gewargis in the
village of Al-Ghasaniyah in the area of Jisr al-Shughur.
The day before yesterday [22 October], the Union of Free Christians
released a statement affirming that the Christians of Syria,
particularly in Aleppo, cling to the Syrian people's social fabric that
is resisting against the killing machine in Syria. The statement said:
"The Syrian people's revolt has been raging for about one year and
a half against the most vicious and murderous dictatorships. This
regime thought that the city of Aleppo was opposed to the revolution
until it shook its foundations. The regime met Aleppo's resistance
by destroying everything in it. It had claimed that Aleppo was loyal
to it. Later, the people of Aleppo were suddenly considered "gangs"
that should be killed and displaced and their homes destroyed as they
are pursued even in their places of displacement".
The Union of Free Christians in Aleppo added: "Since the eruption of
the revolution, the regime has been labelling Aleppo as a Salafi and
terrorist town in its attempts to fabricate fears of the revolution
among some components of the Syrian people. It tried to manipulate
the natural differences among these components, particularly the
Christians, in an attempt to isolate them from the revolution.
However, as the revolution takes major strides in its march to
overthrow the regime, broad sectors of Christians stand alongside
their people's revolt in various forms. Whenever the regime felt their
resistance was broadening, it would fabricate fresh illusions giving
the impression that it is still powerful. Its last such attempt was
demonstrated when it displayed the bodies which it said belonged
to the Free Syrian Army [FSA] -the regime is not above bringing
in hundreds of bodies of those that were liquidated every day in
its dungeons or the bodies of martyrs who fall as a result of the
shelling and destruction -in several Christian neighbourhoods where its
security centres are located. Most important of these locations is the
political security branch in the neighbourhood of Al-Sulaymaniyah that
has turned into a military garrison that reminds us of the barracks
of the occupation. The regime managed to recruit a small number from
the sons of these Christian neighbourhoods in a shameful celebration
that has nothing to do with the principles of Christianity, since
Christianity stands before death in reverence and not with dancing,
ululations, and pleasure".
The statement that coincided with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei
Lavrov's remark that "Al-Asad's regime is the protector of minorities
in the region," went on to say: "Over the past century to date,
the town of Aleppo has been the scene of brotherhood among its sons
that is unprecedented in the history of co-existence as it resisted
against the occupation and tyranny as well as in co-existence in the
scientific, cultural, and religious centres and in the markets and
the neighbourhoods. The regime and its security organs managed to
recruit a very small number of Christians in the ranks of what the
world has come to know as the shabihah. The regime exploited those
with criminal records or those suffering from hard living conditions
as well as ignorance. A few members of several Armenian sects were
also involved for political considerations".
The statement went on to say: "As free Christians, we proclaim that
the stands of these few on the side of the regime do not express the
stands of the Christians in Aleppo who are fed up with this regime
under whose rule Syria suffered from the biggest waves of migration.
The presence of Christians has dropped to its lowest levels as their
economic, political, cultural, and social role declines. This is
especially true of the Armenians whose history in Syria goes back
to more than 100 years when Syria provided them with refuge and the
highest forms of hospitality as they fled from persecution. Syria
became the homeland of the Armenians at a time when no one had heard
of the Al-Asad family".
The statement of the Union of Free Christians concluded: "As free
Christians, we consider ourselves part of the Syrian revolution and
participants in all its activities. We proclaim our condemnation
of all the manifestations of provocation fabricated by the security
organs of the regime and its executioners from the various sects.
Christianity is innocent of such manifestations".
[Translated from Arabic]
From: Baghdasarian