Syrian Christians attend first Christmas Eve service since al-Assad’s fall
Syrian Christians have attended Christmas Eve services for the first time since the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad in early December. In Sednaya, Syria, a large crowd gathered near a historic monastery on Christmas Eve to witness the lighting of a towering tree adorned with glowing green lights.
The celebration offered a rare moment of joy in a city scarred by more than a decade of war and its infamous prison, where tens of thousands were held.
Families and friends stood by the illuminated tree, some wearing Santa hats, others watching from rooftops, while a band played festive music and fireworks lit up the sky.
“This year is different, there’s happiness, victory and a new birth for Syria and a new birth for Christ,” said attendee Houssam Saadeh.
Another, Joseph Khabbaz, expressed hope for unity across all sects and religions in Syria.
The pews of Lady of Damascus Church in Syria’s capital filled with a mixed congregation of young and old, holding candles as hymns filled the air and echoed through the church.
Syrian armed groups to unite under one army
Syrian factions agree to disband and come together to form a national army, under the new Ministry of Defence. Here’s a look at the main armed groups in Syria and why one major player is missing from the deal.
Erdogan says YPG ‘will be buried’ in Syria if it doesn’t lay down arms
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned that Kurdish fighters in Syria will either lay down their weapons or “be buried”, amid hostilities between Turkiye-backed Syrian rebels and other armed groups since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad earlier this month.
Following al-Assad’s ouster on December 8, Ankara has repeatedly insisted that the Kurdish YPG militia must disband, asserting that the group has no place in Syria’s future. The change in Syria’s leadership has left the country’s main Kurdish factions on the back foot.
“The separatist murderers will either bid farewell to their weapons, or they will be buried in Syrian lands along with their weapons,” Erdogan told lawmakers from his ruling AK Party in parliament on Wednesday. “We will eradicate the terrorist organisation that is trying to weave a wall of blood between us and our Kurdish siblings,” he added.
Turkiye views the YPG militia – the main component of the United States-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militia, which has waged a rebellion against the Turkish state since 1984.
The PKK is designated a terrorist organisation by Turkiye, the US and the European Union. Ankara has repeatedly called on its NATO ally Washington and others to stop supporting the YPG.
Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Istanbul, said this is not a surprising statement by Erdogan “as it is the official rhetoric of the Turkish government”. Since the YPG is considered “the Syrian branch of the PKK, Ankara believes that they should either lay down arms, or they should fight and they will be defeated,” Koseoglu said.
Earlier, Turkiye’s defence ministry said the armed forces had killed 21 YPG-PKK fighters in northern Syria and Iraq.
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi acknowledged last week the presence of PKK fighters in Syria for the first time, saying they had helped battle ISIL (also known as ISIS) fighters and would return home if a total ceasefire was agreed with Turkiye, a core demand from Ankara.
He denied any organisational ties with the PKK.
Erdogan also said Turkiye would soon open its consulate in Aleppo, adding that Ankara expected an increase in traffic at its borders in the summer of next year as some of the millions of Syrian migrants it hosts begin to return to their homes.
