During late January and early February, a delegation of senior Syrian church leaders visited Washington to raise the plight of the Christian community in the war-ravaged country. It was the first time since the start of the civil war, in March 2011, that such a visit had taken place.
On January 27, they participated in a panel discussion at the Heritage Foundation titled, ‘Marked for Destruction: The Plight of Syria’s Christians’. The church leaders spoke of the unbelievable atrocities that have been committed against the Christian community by rebel groups, who are backed by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey.
More than 1,200 Christians were reportedly martyred in 2013; over 600,000 Christians have fled the country, with even more being internally displaced; and an estimated 30-40 churches have been seriously damaged or completely destroyed.
