Happening right now
Even after the U.S. reversed its decision to withdraw from the region and ultimately redeployed troops into Syria, Christian sources on the ground dispute claims that an actual cease-fire has yet to happen.
Among the cities in the most imminent danger are two bastions of ancient Assyrian Christianity: Qamishli and Tel Tamr (Tal Tamer/Til Temir).
In Qamishli, the larger of the two cities, the Christian community immediately released a statement of concern following the October reports of the U.S. withdrawal of troops. Their fears quickly became a reality. According to Mindy Belz of World, who continually provides comprehensive reporting in the area, “Qamishli and this region have been roiled with ISIS sleeper cells and Turkish-backed militias since October’s U.S. pullout from key border points, which precipitated an invasion by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.”
In November 2019, a series of attacks by ISIS were perpetrated in Qamishli in which Christians were targeted. Belz was across the street from one of the locations where a car bomb exploded, killing seven people and wounding dozens more. Belz reflects on her own brush with terror:
“In America we absorb this news from a studied distance. In Qamishli, I didn’t have that option. I watched as shopkeepers moved toward the flames. They jumped atop fire trucks, carried out dead and wounded, and later joined workers who spent hours upon hours sweeping glass and debris from the streets. The next day much of the street reopened for business, and men sat brazenly on the sidewalk.” [full article]
The number of Christians in Qamishli had already seen a dramatic decrease from 2011 to 2018, from around 25,000 to around 12,000. Following these tragic events in recent weeks, one can only surmise that many more Assyrian Christians, even among the most resilient of them, will leave Qamishli. Soon there could be no more Syriac churches remaining.
In the smaller Tel Tamr, the situation could be even more bleak. Tel Tamr and its surrounding villages was home to 20,000 Assyrian Christians just five years ago. Now, only around 1,200 remain. The imminent danger from conflicts involving Turkish forces, the Syrian National Army (SNA), and the threat of ISIS could easily cause this city with its pivotal Syriac community to become completely deserted. In November, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria released a video of ISIS members claiming they had “cut the road to Til Temir and we are marching towards the town.”
According to Sylvain Mercadier of the Iraqi/Kurdish media outlet Rudaw, “If Tel Tamr falls . . . the ancient Christian presence in North-Eastern Syria will come to an end.”
This is a story Assyrian Christians have seen before.
In 2015, ISIS invaded the nearby Christian community of Tel Tal and destroyed many of its churches. They also kidnapped more than 220 people and held them for outrageous ransom amounts. Since that time, 90% of Assyrian Christians have fled, and less than a thousand remain. Where there were churches in 30 villages in the region before that time, now only one church still holds regular services.
All of this leads many Assyrian Christians to ask: Will there be an ancient Christian presence—either in flesh and blood, brick and mortar, or stone and mud left in Syria in the next decade?
What can be done?
A consistent theme emerges in every article, report, and interview regarding the Assyrians in their homeland: They must receive help from the international community, including further support from the U.S. and our allies.
Thankfully, there is overwhelming bi-partisan support for maintaining a reasonable, yet strong presence in northeastern Syria. This is, in part, to help protect our allies such as the Kurds and to continue to eradicate terror groups. There is also the goal of protecting the Syrian people themselves and helping them maintain their homes and identities in their own lands.
Assyrian families and churches simply cannot survive these conflicts and threats of terrorism alone. They need our government and church leaders to pay attention and renew our support.
This is where we who are their brothers and sisters in Christ and part of the global Christian community must take notice.
- The Assyrian Christians must be seen, and their stories should be heard and retold.
- As our understanding of their situation deepens, our intercession for them in our prayer lives must also deepen.
- There are several great organizations and leaders working on the frontlines of this crisis. Many are working directly with Syriac Christians and other vulnerable people who are made in God’s image, and our support can make a difference right now.
- We must speak up in support of the immense value of their lives, homes, and freedom—including their religious freedom. As Americans, we have voices to raise to elected officials and others who affect international policies and diplomacy. The bottom line is that stability and wholeness will not be achieved in northeastern Syria without our continued involvement.
There is little to no time left. If the few Christian families and churches remaining in northeastern Syria are not protected, this may well be the last few months for ancient Assyrian Christian communities in their homeland.
Sources:
- Christoph Baumer, The Church of the East: An Illustrated History of Assyrian Christianity (Bloomsbury, 2016).
- Sylvain Mercadier, “Tel Tamr: the last Assyrian frontline,” Rudaw (12/1/19): https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/01122019
- Jayson Casper, “Syrian Christians Brave Insecurity to Stay Behind and Help,” Christianity Today (10/18/19): https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2019/october/syrian-christians-open-doors-preemptive-love-aid-relief.html
- Casper, “Syrian Christians to US: ‘Don’t Abandon Us Now’,” Christianity Today (10/8/19) : https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2019/october/syrian-christians-kurds-us-withdrawal-turkey.html
- Belz, Mindy, “In the house of mourning: Syrians want ‘our pain to reach your government’,” World (11/21/19): https://world.wng.org/2019/11/in_the_house_of_mourning
- Belz, “Attacks in Syria target Christians, civilians,” World (11/12/19): https://world.wng.org/2019/11/attacks_in_syria_target_christians_civilians
- Belz, “Witness to atrocities: Refugees attest to indiscriminate killings by Turkish fighters as the Trump administration reverses course, sends troops back into Syria,” World (11/11/19): https://world.wng.org/2019/11/witness_to_atrocities
- Belz, “A cruel withdrawal: The departure of U.S. forces from Syria allows Turkish forces to target civilians with atrocities—even during a U.S.-brokered cease-fire,” World (11/9/19): https://world.wng.org/2019/10/a_cruel_withdrawal
- Makini Brice et.al, “U.S. Republicans join Democrats to blast Syria withdrawal)” Reuters (10/7/19): https://www.reuters.com/article/us-syria-security-turkey-usa-congress/us-republicans-join-democrats-to-blast-trumps-syria-withdrawal-idUSKBN1WM1ZO
- Marlo Safi, “Closure of Syrian Schools: Another Bleak Sign for Christians in Syria,” National Review (9/25/18): https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/09/assyrian-christians-face-persecution-kurdish-nationalists/
- Ben Hubbard, “ ‘There Are No Girls Left: Syria’s Christian Villages Hollowed Out by ISIS,” New York Times (8/15/18): https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/15/world/middleeast/syria-isis-assyrian-christians.html
- Robert Herguth, “Chicago immigrant: Assyrians suffered ‘so much’ but ‘still have hope’,” Chicago Sun-Times (3/7/18): https://chicago.suntimes.com/2018/3/7/18401757/chicago-immigrant-assyrians-suffered-so-much-but-still-have-hope
- Karwan Faidhi Dri, “Turkish shelling kills at least 10 civilians, mostly children, in NW Syria: local sources,” Rudaw (12/2/19): https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/02122019
- Carl Anderson, “A mass Christian exodus from the Middle East would be a catastrophe,” New York Post (11/15/19): https://nypost.com/2019/11/15/a-mass-christian-exodus-from-the-middle-east-would-be-a-catastrophe/
This article originally appeared here.
