Syria's Deir el-Zor: Churches Damaged by War, Hope for Christian Community's Revival

Deir el-Zor's Churches Amidst War

• 💔 The Christian community in Deir el-Zor, eastern Syria, faces near extinction after 14 years of civil war.
• ⛪ All five of the city's churches have been heavily damaged or almost entirely destroyed.

Efforts to Restore Christian Presence

• 🗣️ George Constantine, one of the few remaining Christians, is determined to restore his faith community's presence, stating it should not be abandoned.
• ✝️ The Church of Christ the King, affiliated with the Capuchin fathers, was a prominent monument before being damaged.

Signs of Revival and Resilience

• 🌱 Amidst devastation, small signs of revival are appearing, including the restoration of a garden at the Capuchin father's convent.
• 🏞️ This garden, once an arid desert filled with mines and tunnels, has been transformed into an agricultural system over three years.

Challenges and Community Impact

• ⚠️ A suicide bombing at the Maraas church resulted in worshippers' deaths on a Sunday.
• ⚖️ Syria's top Christian leader criticized the government's responsibility for not protecting minorities during the funeral for the victims.

Shrinking Christian Population

• 📉 Before the war, Christians constituted about 10% of Syria's population (22 million).
• 🌍 Their numbers have significantly decreased due to immigration during the 14-year conflict, with only a few hundred thousand estimated to remain in Syria.