Syria's Christians ask 'Why us?' after suicide bombing at Damascus church
A person stands next to funeral notices at Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Damascus following the suicide bombing on Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Damascus, Syria June 23, 2025. REUTERS/Firas Makdesi
DAMASCUS (Reuters) -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 neighbourhoods in the last six months to urge them to convert to Islam and to stop consuming alcohol.
SECURITY CONCERNS
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 Sonday'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.
(Reporting by Firas Makdesi, Writing by Maya Gebeily and Timothy Heritage)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
20 minutes ago
- The Star
No Iranian attack detected at any US base other than Qatar, US military official says
BEIRUT (Reuters) -There was no Iranian attack detected at any U.S. military base other than in Qatar, a U.S. military official told Reuters on Monday. There was no impact on the U.S. Al Udeid airbase in Qatar, the official said. Military sources told Reuters on Monday that air defense systems were activated in the U.S. Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq for fear of a potential attack. (Reporting by Timour Azhari, writing by Jaidaa Taha, editing by Chris Reese)
The Star
34 minutes ago
- The Star
US announces up to $5 million reward for information on Afghan-American taken by Taliban
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. on Monday announced a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the location and release of Mahmoud Habibi, an Afghan-American businessman who was detained by the Taliban's intelligence service on August 10, 2022. A former civil aviation chief under Afghanistan's ousted Western-backed government, Habibi and his driver were seized along with 29 other employees of the Kabul telecommunications firm for which he worked, said a State Department notice. All except Habibi and one other person were subsequently released. "Mr. Habibi has not been heard from since his initial arrest and the so-called Taliban government has yet to provide any information regarding his whereabouts or condition," said the notice issued by the department's Rewards for Justice program. "Rewards for Justice is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the location, recovery, and return of" Habibi, it said. The Taliban, who seized Kabul as the last U.S. troops pulled out in August 2021 after a 20-year war, deny holding Habibi. (Reporting by Jonathan Landay)
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Ukrainian forces attack oil depot in Russia's Rostov region
(Reuters) -Ukrainian forces on Monday attacked and set ablaze an oil depot in Russia's southern Rostov region used to supply Russian forces in occupied parts of Ukraine, the Ukrainian military said. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said the military's special operations units, in conjunction with rocket forces and artillery, had hit the Atlas plant in the Rostov region, not far from Ukraine's eastern border. "A strike by our forces in the area of the target has been confirmed," the General Staff said in a statement on Telegram. "A fire has been observed. The results of the strike are being clarified." The statement said the facility was used to provide fuel and lubricants to Russian units operating in Russian-occupied parts of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions on the war's eastern front. Ukrainian forces have been engaged in cross-border attacks, including energy industry targets, which the General Staff said was aimed at curbing Russia's economic potential to proceed with the more than three-year-old war in Ukraine. Ukrainian military bloggers had earlier reported on the raid on the oil depot, saying fuel tanks had been engulfed in a blaze in the incident. (Reporting by Ron Popeski, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
