The cruel bombing of the Mar Elias Church in Damascus on 22 June 2025, in which dozens of Christian Syriacs (Arameans/Chaldeans/Assyrians) were killed or severely injured, is not only an attack on the lives of innocent people. It is an attack on human dignity, on freedom of religion, and on the fundamental principle that underpins every civilized society: that every life is equally valuable – regardless of origin, faith, or ethnic affiliation.
Especially in the Middle East, where religious and ethnic minorities have been oppressed, displaced, or murdered for decades, this universal principle must finally be taken seriously. Human dignity must not remain an exclusive privilege of Western democracies. It applies everywhere – including in Syria. But for this to become reality, the new rulers in Syria must abandon the path of violence and religiously motivated domination. A constitution based on Sharia and exclusion cannot serve as the foundation for a peaceful and just coexistence.
Current developments show a dangerous escalation: What began with waves of persecution against the Alawite community is now continuing with brutal violence against the Christian Syriacs. The Syriacs appear to be the next target of extremist ideologies – an alarming pattern we must not ignore.
Instead, a new democratic order is needed – one in which the indigenous people of the Syriacs finally receive genuine political and cultural recognition. This people, who have lived in Mesopotamia for thousands of years and were nearly exterminated by the genocide of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire, are once again the target of extremist violence. The ideology that once aimed to annihilate hundreds of thousands of Syriacs, Armenians, and Greeks lives on in a new form today – in terrorist groups that bomb churches and seek to expel Christians.
In this sensitive phase, the international community also bears responsibility – especially Germany. It is not enough to transfer millions in aid funds to the Syrian central government without political conditions and structural oversight. Such naive and unconditional support strengthens existing centers of power and ignores the real needs of the local population.
This is precisely where Germany should also work specifically with decentralized, local aid organizations such as Syriac Cross e.V. These organizations know the local reality, operate transparently, and promote a pluralistic civil society. At the same time, through this kind of cooperation, local actors learn the value of democratic principles such as the separation of powers, accountability, and participation. In this way, a partnership can become support at eye level – and a model that can serve as an example in other countries of the Middle East.
The victims of Damascus remind us: Human dignity must not be an empty promise. It must be politically defended, structurally protected, and demanded worldwide – especially where it is most under threat.
For this reason, on 5 and 6 July, numerous rallies and demonstrations took place across Germany, where people of various backgrounds jointly expressed their solidarity with the victims and sent a clear signal against terror and religious persecution.
