Islamic State (IS) militants freed a group of 25 Christians from Syria’s north-eastern Khabur river area on the morning of 25 December, a Christmas blessing. However, just five days later 13 Christians were killed when jihadists bombed three Christian-run restaurants in northern Syria.
The 25 Christians had been held for ten months. They are part of a larger group of 253 believers who were captured when jihadists raided their villages last February, some of whom have previously been released in small groups.
IS has claimed responsibility for the blasts on 30 December in which 16 people were killed and around 35 wounded when two Christian-run restaurants were targeted in a mainly Christian area in the centre of Qamishli, close to the Turkish border.
