Syrian Christians call for greater protections after Christmas tree burned
HTS representative says act committed by non-Syrians who will be punished, tree to be fully restored
Scores of Syrian Christians protested in the capital Damascus on Tuesday, demanding greater protections for their religious minority after a Christmas tree was set on fire in the city of Hama a day earlier.
Many of the insurgents who now rule Syria are jihadis, although Ahmad al-Sharaa, the leader of the main rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), has renounced longtime ties to al-Qaeda and spent years depicting himself as a champion of pluralism and tolerance.
It remains unclear who set the Christmas tree on fire on Monday, an act that was condemned by a representative of HTS who visited the town and addressed the community.
"This act was committed by people who are not Syrian, and they will be punished beyond your expectations," the representative said in a video widely shared on social media.
"The Christmas tree will be fully restored by this evening."
On Tuesday, protesters marched through the streets of Bab Touma, a neighbourhood in Damascus, shouting slogans against foreign fighters and carrying large wooden crosses.
"We demand that Syria be for all Syrians. We want a voice in the future of our country," said Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II of the Syriac Orthodox Church as he addressed the crowd in a church courtyard, assuring them of Christians' rights in Syria.
Since HTS led a swift offensive that overthrew former president Bashar al-Assad earlier this month, Syria's minority communities have been on edge, uncertain of how they will be treated under the emerging rebel-led government.
"We are here to demand a democratic and free government for one people and one nation," another protester said. "We stand united — Muslims and Christians. No to sectarianism."