Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Beirut (Agenzia Fides) - "If the Alawite regime of Bashar al Hassad falls, the Christian minorities are at great risk. The risk is to see what happened in Iraq, after the fall of Saddam Hussein "is what Fr. Paul Karam, Lebanese priest and missionary, national Director of the Pontifical Mission in Lebanon, who knows the reality of the Lebanese and Syrian refers to Fides.
"The Lebanese nation was occupied by Syria for 28 years. There are still signs of this suffering. Knowing the internal situation, it is possible that, given the growth of Sunni fundamentalism and fanaticism, if the political scene were to change radically, Christians could become a target and suffer a lot. It is necessary to raise a fundamental question about the future of the Christian communities in Syria and in countries where the transition of the so-called Arab Spring is underway " remarks Fr Paul.
According to the priest, a message and an example for the region is from Lebanon, "where 18 religious denominations and religious freedom have a recognized space and live together". "We hope that in the Arab world the principle of religious freedom and value can grow. For us Lebanese Christians the challenge is to be witnesses of dialogue, coexistence and love, so as to constitute a message to all peoples of the Middle East. The mission of the Church in the Middle East - he concludes - brings with it this hope and challenge. "Christians in Syria are about 5% of the population, one million people out of 21 million inhabitants, are 90% Muslims. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 16/05/2011)
