Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al Qaeda terrorist and current Interim President of Syria, failed to prevent a massacre of over 1,000 Syrians, including Christians, that occurred last Thursday and persisted over several days. His organization, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a U.S.-designated Sunni terrorist group, overthrew former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December. However, Christian leaders and human rights activists doubt the ability of al-Sharaa’s Islamist regime to establish a democracy that can protect vulnerable religious minority groups. Rev. Johnnie Moore of The Congress of Christian Leaders criticized the Syrian government for failing to protect innocent Christians who were victims of the violence.
Video footage showing Islamist militants massacring Syrian Alawites, a minority religious group, led al-Sharaa to declare that those involved in the violence would be held accountable. However, Moore highlighted the failure of the new government to protect its citizens, pointing out that foreign fighters under the direction or influence of the Syrian government have indiscriminately killed civilians, including Christians. Moore emphasized that while the new Syrian government may not be ISIS, they are still categorized as ‘Islamists’, and al-Sharaa was previously affiliated with the Islamist State terrorist movement.
Moore criticized European governments for seemingly rewarding the hardcore Syrian Islamist regime by waiving sanctions and planning a funding conference to support the new Syrian government. He stressed the importance of the United States sending a clear message to the Syrian government that sanctions relief and normalization of relations will not occur until the government proves it can protect all its citizens, including vulnerable Christians. During the civil war in Syria, Christians were killed and displaced, and the Christian population in Syria has considerably decreased since the conflict began in 2011.
The Center for Religious Freedom’s Nina Shea and Moore discussed the threat to Christianity in Syria after rebels took control of the capital and the U.S.’s role in protecting Christians. Prior to the civil war, the Syrian Christian community numbered 1.5 million, but it has since dwindled to an estimated 300,000. Moore highlighted the need for the U.S. to support and protect vulnerable religious minority groups in Syria, particularly Christians, and to ensure that the new Syrian government can fulfill its responsibility to safeguard all citizens. The failure of the Syrian government under al-Sharaa to prevent the massacre of innocent Syrians, including Christians, raises concerns about its ability to establish a functioning democracy and protect religious minorities.
