Syria: Islamists Are Desecrating Churches And Pillaging Christian Houses, Thousands Forced To Flee

For peaceful purposes …

Qur’an Sura 4:76a, “Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah …”

Hadith, Al Bukhari 2:24, “Allah’s Apostle said: ‘I have been ordered (by Allah) to fight against the people until they testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah’s Apostle …”

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The Armenian Weekly – “A delegation of priest from the Catholicosate of Cilicia who had visited Latakia to assess the needs of Kessab Armenians and express solidarity returned to Antelias after the Sunday Badarak.

According to the delegation, the local Armenian community, the International Red Cross, and the Red Crescent are providing assistance to those who have sought refuge in the city. An estimated 2,000 Kessab Armenians are currently in Latakia.

‘Many Armenian families are staying with relatives and friends, while others have sought refuge in the Armenian Church and the church’s hall,’ said Syrian Armenian community activist Nerses Sarkissian during a phone interview with Weekly editor Khatchig Mouradian.

‘The Aleppo Armenian Prelacy as well as the Red Crescent are providing relief and assistance to these families in Latakia,’ Sarkissian added.

Extremist fighters engage in robbery and desecration

The fighters, mostly from the extremist Nusra Front, who have entered Kessab are desecrating churches, pillaging houses, and destroying government buildings, Sarkissian told the Weekly. A few Syrian Armenians have been unable to leave Kessab, and their fate is unclear, he added.

Sarkissian underlined that the fighters came from the Turkish side of the border and are receiving support from the Turkish military. He noted that the injured among them are being transported back to Turkey to receive medical attention…

Perched in the northwestern corner of Syria, near the border with Turkey, Kessab had, until very recently, evaded major battles between the army and rebels. Many Syrians had taken refuge there because of the relative calm in the area over the past three years.” Read more.

Flashback: Again: Syria’s Christians Threatened To ‘Convert, Submit To Islam Or Face The Sword’ – “Convert. Submit to Islam. Or face the sword.’ In recent days, the besieged Christian community in Raqqa – a city in northern Syria – has faced those three stark alternatives. The terrorist group known as ISIS – the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – made their demands after seizing control of the region. They required the local Christians to renounce their faith and embrace Islam, assent to extreme subjugation, or face death.” Read more.

Flashback: Syria: Jihadists Impose Islamic-Sanctioned Extortion Upon Local Christians, Threaten Death For Noncompliance – “A jihadist group linked to al -Qaeda has released a set of rules of submission for Christians of Raqqa. These include a protection fee, the order to practice their faith in the privacy of their homes and a ban on wearing any obvious sign of Christianity. The rules (termed ‘Agreement’) were drawn up and are being imposed by members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a group linked to al- Qaeda in Iraq and which aims to create a single caliphate that spans the Middle East, North Africa, Andalusia and southern Italy, the ancient Arab and Islamic lands.” Read more.