(Catholic Online) – Fighters that have been linked to Al Qaeda took control of the Christian village of Maaloula after fighting with regime forces. Fears have been reignited about western support for the rebel groups, which strongly infiltrated by Islamic extremists. The rebels, many of who sport beards, shouting the phrase  "Allahu Akbar" (God is great), attacked Christian homes and churches shortly after moving into the village, saying that they had "liberated" the residents from government forces. 

"They shot and killed people," one Maaloula resident says. "I heard gunshots and then I saw three bodies lying in the middle of a street in the old quarters of the village. Where is President Obama to see what has befallen us?" "I saw the militants grabbing five villagers and threatening them and saying, "either you convert to Islam, or you will be beheaded,’" another Christian resident said.  Another said one church had been torched while other gunmen stormed into two other churches and robbed them.

The world today is waiting and worrying. The UN Security Council is waiting for the French draft resolution, which builds on the Russian offer to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control. US President Barack Obama is waiting anxiously, too. He wants to know whether this offer is more than a political maneuver and could […]

President Michel Suleiman reiterated on Wednesday that the U.N. should hold accountable officials who used chemical weapons in Syria away from foreign military intervention. During a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Suleiman said he rejected the use of chemical weapons but stressed the importance of a U.N. Security Council role in […]

  The government and the opposition welcome and need Christian support, as the 18-month-long Syrian conflict continues to roil. Some Christians fear radical Islamists have been swelling rebel ranks. Christians make up roughly 10 percent of the population. Syria is ruled by a government dominated by Alawites, whose faith is an offshoot of Shiism.  Aid […]

The United States has withdrawn all non-emergency embassy workers and their families from Beirut and warned Americans against travel to Lebanon amid looming military strikes on Syria, the State Department said Friday. It said the decision had been taken "due to potential threats to U.S. Mission facilities and personnel," and comes amid tension in the […]

President Michel Suleiman denounced on Monday any violation of holy places and sites for the “symbols of civilization they hold and spirit of peace and tolerance they have.” The president expressed deep dismay after reports that Syrian rebels, including jihadists linked to al-Qaida, have taken control on Sunday of the historic Christian town of Maalula […]

President Michel Suleiman stressed on Saturday on the necessity to find a political solution to the Syrian crisis.Suleiman’s statement came during a meeting with his French counterpart Francois Hollande in France’s southern city of Nice. The talks tackled the latest regional developments, especially the Syrian crisis, the state-run National News Agency said. "Suleiman stressed again […]

An al Qaeda-linked rebel group has wrested control of the historic Christian town of Maaloula from regime forces, opposition groups said Sunday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the hardline Islamist rebels of the al-Nusra Front seized control Saturday night. Videos posted on YouTube in recent days showed fighting between rebels and government forces […]

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi stressed on Sunday that the army guarantees Lebanon’s security and sovereignty, while condemning the spread of arms outside the state’s authority. He said during his Sunday sermon: “The illegitimate weapons pose a threat to the army and other security agencies in Lebanon.” “We demand a defense strategy for Lebanon and an […]

As President Barack Obama tries to rally the world around a proposed attack on Syria, Arab Christian leaders have come out as strongly opposed, worried an attack could create a backlash against their communities.