ICC Note: Since the conflict in Syria started in March 2011, more than 40 percent of Syria’s Christian population has fled. Nearly all of them have faced violence of some sort. As they look around for protection they see almost no hope for protection of their rights and now simply want someone to keep them alive. The situation is complex as Christians simply are looking to survive in the lands where Christianity was birthed.

01/07/2016 Syria (Atlantic Council) Syrian Christians face the difficult question of how to preserve their communities. The Islamic State (ISIS) and other Islamist groups target Christians for a variety of reasons, including to gain credibility as the implementers of “true” Islam and for economic reasons, forcing Christians to pay higher taxes (Jizya), seizing their property, and even capturing Christians as slaves. Christians in regime territories are safe from immediate danger, but struggle to keep their communities together.

Despite Assad’s efforts to portray himself domestically and internationally as a protector of Christians, the prelate who hosted me this past August in Damascus was openly critical of him. The prelate, who asked not to be named, said of Bashar al-Assad, “He is a dictator trying to save his head, only interested in himself and his family, not even his [Alawite] sect.”

However, the fact that the prelate has no love for Bashar al-Assad does not mean that he is going to turn on him. The prelate’s priority is his community and he feels that no one else is protecting Syrian Christians. “Western governments are not helping, with the exception of Germany, whose government has provided food parcels, medical kits, and education programs to our Church organizations and maybe to others as well.” He continued, “They are willing to help Iraqi Christians because they are persecuted by ISIS, but here in Syria we are considered to be pro-regime.”

Syria’s Christians are like the rest of its population, the prelate explains, divided between proponents and opponents to the regime and those who remain neutral, “but in the end, Christians find the president [Assad] a protector, somehow. Until now, the opposition did not present any good things to the rest of population. We are seeing only Islamic opposition and takfiris against everybody,” he said, referring to the practice of extremist groups of declaring those who do not align with their beliefs as apostates. “We don’t know when we will have real democracy but until then he [Bashar al-Assad] is the best.”

Nonetheless, Syria’s Christians are aware that the regime cannot guarantee their safety forever. “We need protection, but can’t be protected by the government,” the prelate confides.

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