SYRIA: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Hama targeted in gun attack, graves vandalized

Greek Orthodox Christians continue to face violence, persecution and intimidation from Turkish-backed terrorists since the fall of Bashar al-Assad, with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Hama and a nearby cemetery on Mhardeh Road the latest targets.

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Hama in west-central Syria was targeted in an attack, with gunfire damaging its façade and crosses on nearby graves vandalized and removed, Greco-Levantines World Wide reported.

Responding to the attack on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Hama, Kyriakos Velopoulos asked on X why “we haven’t heard” from Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis or his government about the attack.

“What are they waiting for?” questioned the president of the Hellenic Solution party.

Although several pro-Islamist news pages claim that the photos of the attack were from 2011, as Greco-Levantines World Wide pointed out, a closer examination reveals that one of the graves belonged to a person who died in 2021.

“We firmly reaffirm that the attack occurred today and that the graves were desecrated today,” the volunteer initiative added.

The attack on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Hama follows on from the vandalism of Hagia Sophia Greek Orthodox Church of Suqaylabiyah (Seleucia, Greek: Σελεύκεια) by Turkish-backed Islamist terrorists on December 12.

Near Hama, the Greek Orthodox church is a small replica of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. It was constructed in 2020 following Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to convert the Hagia Sophia into a mosque.

On the same day as the vandalism of the Hagia Sophia Church, two Greek Orthodox Christians, Samaan Satme and Helena Khashouf, were murdered in the village of al-Jamasliyye in Syria’s Homs province.

Although the murder was initially reported as a burglary gone wrong, it later emerged that Samaan was beheaded and Helena shot, indicating that there were other motives.

Murdered on December 13, their funeral procession began the next day in the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, Haba.

According to local reports, “random murders” in Homs and the coast continue, often fitting the pattern of assailants entering a house to murder the victims.