Christians in Syria's Latakia attend Sunday mass, a week after Assad's fall | ABS-CBN News

Syrian Orthodox Christians in the port city of Latakia attended Sunday mass on December 15, for the first time since the dramatic overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad a week ago, in an early test of assurances by the new Islamist rulers that the rights of minorities will be protected. The mass, conducted by Athanasios Fahed, Metropolitan of Latakia and its dependencies for the Greek Orthodox, took place at St. Georges des Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Syria's coastal Latakia. Worshippers prayed and lit candles, seeking solace in the new era of their country. Metropolitan Fahed expressed concerns over the chaos following the regime's fall, describing the collapse of state institutions as leaving "the street to the rabble." “Last Sunday (December 8), we were surprised, just like the entire Syrian people, by the change that occurred. Naturally, there were many fears,” he said. Lina Akhras, a parish council secretary at the St George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, said on Sunday that Christians had been "comfortable" under old rule in terms of freedom of belief but that they just wanted to live in peace and harmony. “My religion is for me, your religion is for you, but the homeland is for all of us.” she added. As the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) swept to power last week, it sought to reassure Syria's minority groups that their way of life would not be at risk. Syria is home to historic ethnic and religious minority communities including Christians, Armenians, Kurds and Shi'ite Muslims, who like many other Syrian Muslims had feared throughout their country's 13-year civil war that any future Islamist rule would imperil their way of life. (Production: Bulent Usta, Dina Sakr) For more ABS-CBN News videos, click the link below: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgyY1WylJUmgUHWUpi2ioSp4xAP1SmAaf For more Breaking News & Live Coverage videos, click the link below: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgyY1WylJUmgG2ln-vtKXb-oLlGEZc3sR For more latest news and analysis from ABS-CBN News videos, click the link below: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgyY1WylJUmg4pcvfM9a96rbUcLD_0P_U For more News Digital News Raw Cuts, click the link below: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgyY1WylJUmivfD9aJD-8k0SNcMqG2xdA Subscribe to the ABS-CBN News channel! - http://bit.ly/TheABSCBNNews Watch full episodes on iWantTFC for FREE here: http://iwanttfc.com Visit our website at http://news.abs-cbn.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abscbnNEWS Twitter: https://twitter.com/abscbnnews Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abscbnnews #Syria #LatestNews #ABSCBNNews