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Perpetrators are allegedly militants from the Islamic Front’s (Jabhat al-Islamiyya) militia “Harakat ‘Ahrar Al-Sham” (Liberators of the Levant Movement), who fired mortar shells at the cathedral

Old Armenian Church Bombed in Syria

By Raymond Ibrahim ——--January 15, 2015

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Raymond Ibrahim. A number of Christian churches, some around 200 years old, were bombed by Islamic rebels last Friday in Aleppo, Syria. Among them was the Armenian Catholic Cathedral, St. Rita — or, “Our Lady of Pity,” built in 1830 — which was left partially destroyed. (Photos below.)
According to the Aleppo-based Rev. Fr. Krikor Milad, the bombing took place at around 5:30 a.m., while everyone slept: “If the bombing had taken place just two hours later, the church would have been full of worshippers. God saved them.” According to the Armenian Weekly,
the perpetrators are allegedly militants from the Islamic Front’s (Jabhat al-Islamiyya) militia “Harakat ‘Ahrar Al-Sham” (Liberators of the Levant Movement), who fired mortar shells at the cathedral. The Jan. 9 attack comes four months after the Armenian Genocide Memorial and Church of Der Zor was destroyed by what was believed to be an act by the Islamic State (IS), though that has not been confirmed. Around 17,000 Catholic Armenians belonged to the Eparchy of Aleppo as of 2008, according to figures provided by the Armenian Catholic Church Patriarchate. However, since the start of the Syrian conflict, many Armenians have left the country.

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Raymond Ibrahim——

RAYMOND IBRAHIM (RaymondIbrahim.com) is a widely published author, public speaker, and Middle East and Islam expert.  His books include Crucified Again: Exposing Islam’s New War on Christians (2013) and The Al Qaeda Reader (2007). His writings, translations, and observations have appeared in a variety of publications, including Fox News, Financial Times, Jerusalem Post, Los Angeles Times, New York Times Syndicate, United Press International, USA Today, Washington Post, Washington Times, and Weekly Standard; scholarly journals, including the Almanac of Islamism, Chronicle of Higher Education, Jane’s Islamic Affairs Analyst, Middle East Quarterly, and Middle East Review of International Affairs; and popular websites, such as American Thinker, the Blaze, Bloomberg, Christian Post, FrontPage Magazine, Gatestone Institute, the Inquisitr, Jihad Watch, NewsMax, National Review Online, PJ Media, VDH’s Private Papers, and World Magazine. He has contributed chapters to several anthologies and been translated into various languages.

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