Enab Baladi – Christina al-Shammas
Christian denominations following both Western and Eastern calendars celebrated Easter amidst a heightened security presence around churches in various Syrian provinces, which reflected a sense of relief and positive reactions among most Syrian Christians interviewed by Enab Baladi.
Christians had expressed fears accompanied by controversies and speculations about their fate in Syria following the fall of the Assad regime.
During Easter, the Bab Sharqi area in Damascus, home to the largest congregation of churches in the Syrian capital, witnessed increased security measures by General Security Forces to ensure adequate protection for Christian worshippers and scout parades, avoiding any incidents that could disturb stability.
Christians prepared to revive their rituals with the commencement of the Great Lent on March 5, which included prayers and masses held over 50 days, followed by religious celebrations that began on Palm Sunday, which coincided with April 13, and the celebrations will continue until Easter on Sunday, April 20.
The religious rituals of Easter hold particular significance for Christians, especially the scout parades of the churches, which conduct demonstration rounds within areas where churches are gathered, requiring security presence to protect the scout parades and worshippers.
Reassuring step
The security deployment surrounding the churches in various Syrian provinces, particularly in Damascus, on Palm Sunday reassured Christians to conduct their prayers and religious rituals naturally, as they have been accustomed to in the past.
Silva al-Salman, a resident of the Bab Sharqi area in Damascus, told Enab Baladi that she participated in all the prayers held in preparation for Easter, and the security presence around the churches made her feel reassured despite her fears about not being able to practice the usual holiday rituals, stating, “The celebrations, rituals, and scout parades have not changed from previous years.”
Fadi al-Assafyeen, a resident of the Bab Touma area in Damascus, noticed the tightening and heightened security measures that preceded Easter by a week, implemented by neighborhood committees and General Security Forces.
Al-Assafyeen emphasized the necessity of security personnel to protect worshippers after incidents in the previous months in Bab Touma and Bab Sharqi, where a majority of the population is Christian, involved unknown individuals conducting Islamic proselytizing activities in public streets, raising concerns among residents.
Rami al-Khoury, a resident of the Duwailah neighborhood in Damascus, spoke about the security presence surrounding Mar Elias and Mar Youssef churches since last Palm Sunday, with security forces inspecting main streets and neighborhood entrances in Duwailah and al-Tabbalah neighborhoods.
Reassurances from al-Sharaa and national unity
The Syrian transitional phase president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has provided reassurances to Christians during meetings with several Christian clergy since the fall of the previous regime.
These reassurances did not prevent individual violations by unknown armed individuals, which stirred fears about the future of Christians in Syria.
Patriarch John X Yazigi, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East for the Greek Orthodox, confirmed in December 2024 the shared unity between Christians and Muslims in Syria.
Patriarch John X stated, “My Muslim brothers, between ‘we’ and ‘you,’ the ‘and’ falls away, and what remains is ‘we are you, and you are us,’ we are together the owners of a shared history in all its rises and falls, and our fate is one.”
Security authorities insist on protection against any violations
Church sources in Damascus expressed genuine fears of security incidents targeting gatherings to destabilize the situation.
The Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper quoted Father Salama Samaan from the Greek Catholic Patriarchate as saying, “There are fears among everyone, not just Christians, of unknown individuals committing acts of violence and assaults, and fear increases during large gatherings.”
Father Samaan noted that the church preferred to spare the authorities additional burdens to secure gatherings and wished for celebrations to remain within churches, but security authorities requested that celebrations occur as usual, with security forces providing the necessary protection.
The country had previously witnessed scattered and limited incidents, such as masked gunmen setting fire to a Christmas tree in al-Suqaylabiyah in Hama countryside, which has a majority Christian population, on December 12, 2024, leading to protests condemning the incident in Damascus and Hama.
Days after the incident, the Orthodox Diocese in downtown Hama was attacked by armed individuals of unknown affiliation who opened fire on the church walls.
Since the fall of the previous regime, numerous questions have arisen about the future of minorities in Syria, especially the Christian community, whose numbers have decreased from about 1.5 million to approximately 300,000, according to unconfirmed reports, including a report by the charity organization “Aid to the Church in Need,” published in 2023.
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