Gemayel Urges World to Stop 'Assault' on Historic Syria Christian Village
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel on Thursday held a series of contacts with the U.N. and world powers in a bid to stop attacks by Qaida-linked rebels on the ancient Syrian Christian village of Maaloula, his office said.
In this regard, Gemayel held phone talks with U.N. political affairs chief Jeffrey Feltman, U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly and the ambassadors of the Vatican, France, Britain and the United States.
Gemayel urged them to “ask their governments to take quick measures to stop the assault on Maaloula and pull the gunmen out of the town and places of worship immediately.”
He called on the envoys to inform their countries' leaders – who gathered Thursday in Saint Petersburg for the G20 summit -- of the “enormity of the attack,” warning that “the onslaught might lead to pushing the events in Syria down an increasingly sectarian and seditious course, which would affect the firmness of the international community's stance on the Syrian crisis.”
Gemayel's office noted that “all these international officials responded to president Gemayel's call,” revealing that “Arab and international stances over this attack are expected to be issued in light of the contacts that got underway between the European capitals, the Vatican and New York.”
It also announced that it had been receiving all day “distress calls from the residents of the town of Maaloula, who called for a prompt action to rescue the historic town, its residents and its spiritual heritage.”
Syrian government troops battled al-Qaida-linked rebels over Maaloula for the second day Thursday.
Residents of the village said the militants entered the village late Wednesday. Rami Abdul Rahman, the director of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the fighters included members of the of al-Qaida affiliated al-Nusra Front.
Despite heavy army presence in the village, Abdul Rahman said the rebels patrolled its streets on foot and in vehicles, briefly surrounding a church and a mosque before leaving early Thursday.
The rebels launched the assault on Maaloula -- which is on a UNESCO list of tentative world heritage sites -- on Wednesday after a Nusra fighter blew himself up at a regime checkpoint at the entrance to the mountain village.
The village, about 60 kilometers northeast of Damascus, is home to 3,300 residents, some of whom still speak a version of Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus Christ that only small, scattered communities around the world still use today.
It is full of troglodyte caves dating back to the first centuries of Christianity, and also houses the Mar Takla Greek Orthodox monastery.
Heavy clashes between President Bashar Assad's troops and al-Nusra Front fighters persisted in surrounding mountains Thursday, according to the Observatory, which collects information from a network of anti-regime activists.
Speaking by phone from a convent in the village, a nun told The Associated Press that the rebels left a mountaintop hotel Thursday after capturing it a day earlier. The nun said the frightened residents expect the Islamist militants to return to the Safir hotel and resume shelling of the community below.
"It's their home now," the nun said. She said some 100 people from the village took refuge in the convent. The 27 orphans who live there had been taken to nearby caves overnight "so they were not scared."
The nun spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
05 September 2013, 22:22
1316
We have been talking about Maaloula and other Christian sites that been targeted for the first time in 40 years. Hmmm what have happened for the first time in 40 years??? The Baath and Assad lost power over part of the country therefore the "West-loved Muslim Brotherhood" are doing the deed Israelis wanted to do for long time: Killing Christians and Alwaites. God bless!
05 September 2013, 22:25
158
Rebels/terrorists same thing at this point. Any legitimate rebel factions have been eroded by the crazies from Saudi Arabia at this point. They are the ones killing Christians, and yep you guessed it, Hezbollah are the ones defending them.
05 September 2013, 22:41
1416
Come on M14ers, make up your mind.
You either wanna support Al-Qeada or you don't.
You cheer when they behead members of the Syrian Army yet you cry when they do something you hate. Hypocrites
06 September 2013, 00:23
165
enough with al qaeda business man.....what do the rebels gain from killing monks and orphans ? nothing...ethnic cleansing never occurs in the heat of a battle , its always programmed and pre meditated. look at the balkan wars. the damour massacre, the jabal massacres in 83 , sabra and chatila, were not random acts and occured after the battles...so yes I feel sad for the war taking place in those villages and they should do like the kurds did....
06 September 2013, 02:15
1216
So the Christians should do what the Kurds did? And leave for Iraqi Kurdistan or, in the christain case, leave for Beirut??
Do ou remember the signs held up during protests in Homs when the "revoloution" was just starting over 2 years ago..... "CHRISTAINS TO BEIRUT AND ALLAWITES IN THE GRAVE"??????
Premeditated enough for you? Or was that an Assad long term trick?
06 September 2013, 00:44
176
dude, give it up. just because someone is against the farsi alliance doesn't make them al queda supporters. your brainwashed minds can't fathom only works on two gears.
how about this? don't like farsi's, hizb iran, ASSad, alqueda, salafi, jihadis, m8ers, and the syrian army. oh yeah, not an m14 supporter either.
doesn't that blow your mind?
05 September 2013, 23:43
1318
Gemayel now realizes that the ultimate goal of FSA-Al Qaeda is the eradication of the Syrian minorities.
Sa7 il nom.
05 September 2013, 23:45
1316
LOL! Al Qaeda sympathizers and their pathetic damage control.
06 September 2013, 00:40
144
This is all a plan by the west to make the Middle East purely Islamic, since this will help them divide and conquer the Islamic nations. Christians will leave for the west, a lot of countries will open their doors for them. Then the west can continue their projects in the Middle East with ease.
06 September 2013, 02:07
1213
And the only bastion of for Jews and christains will be the beacon of light, Israel! However, Christains will my be allowed to visit.
06 September 2013, 07:05
610
ado.australia: I've read on some places the government in Israel that is, is discriminatory towards Christians. Though I thought that was just bias against Israel in the articles. Mind you back your claims with some links or at least the name of the show or the channel or some other such hint as to its source?
06 September 2013, 11:07
310
Endless... this is one link. There are many more.
be quick before the post gets deleted again.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPi9l6VGMtY
06 September 2013, 02:52
08
Jesus Christ is Lord of heaven and earth.
“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you"
06 September 2013, 03:07
142
some filthy politicians are good at putting oil where water is needed. the only way out for the shabihas (both lebanese and syrian) is to let it all get out of control. the war is lost for them...
06 September 2013, 04:03
111
....@(O_O)@ oo oo ah ah!
boring bigjon the australian white nurd. we both live in the southern hemisphere... but por dios, don't get close to me. i dislike racists and segregationists!
06 September 2013, 09:36
210
it's classical, whenever there are muslim majority they cant tolerate christians, and when there is a christian majority ( europe US ) they give muslim nationalities and equal rights!
muslims in majority are still 1000 years behind!
Sad but true
06 September 2013, 11:28
411
gabby that's a lie, sharia doesnt apply to non-muslims in iran. they can therefore produce, sell, buy, drink alcohol for instance without "being killed" as you claim nor anything, it's legal for them.
also religious minorities have guaranteed seats in parliament, 9 seats are reserved for catholics and armenians, 3 for jews, so dont go spewing lies with your hate and propaganda.
06 September 2013, 11:30
410
the only thing they are required not to do is proselytizing activities
06 September 2013, 13:15
19
ask and ye shall receive banikharoof
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/07/syrian_jihadists_beh.php
06 September 2013, 13:51
102
here's the problem with all Lebanese parties, they are sectarian.This is a Syrian village no matter what their religion, civilians dying no matter what their sect is. unfortunately ppl in Lebanon will worry about Christians or ppl from their sect somewhere in the world instead of focusing just on Lebanon and its people. besides I really doubt Syrian Christians felt bad for us when their president Hafez had zahle under siege, actually he had all of Lebanon's Christians under siege
06 September 2013, 15:58
110
what those idiots are too uncivilized to know, is that the Christians of the Levant fought against the Crusaders, whereas some Muslims fought alongside them!!
07 September 2013, 00:05
05
the armed lebanese factions in 1975 were a creation of necessity...not will of all the people ...pretty much like the american revolution was , a creation due to the need to protect the people from oppression....didn't the torries leave the US during the revolution and move to canada??
so when armed militias take to the streets in the absence of government, not every body is going to be supportive but the fact is that it was the only reason we have a lebanon still and not a NEW palestine , these militias are the reason hizballah exist because we could have been the greater SYRIA without them and the hizballah would soldiers in the official syrian army .....and if you don't approve of what happened , may be you should have went and blew up the cairo accord in 1969 that allowed the palestians to get armed in lebanon....
