TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR) said that the abduction of seizes 90 Assyrians by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist organization can be considered as a warning for Christians in Middle East countries.
SOHR reported that ISIS had kidnapped 90 Assyrian Christians near Tal Tamr. The attack targeted some 35 mostly Assyrian settlements near the Khabur river, a tributary of the Euphrates. Previously, there had been heavy fighting in the area between Isis and the YPG, the Kurdish militia backed by the US-led coalition.
"This is another episode of the targeting of Christians of the east,” Habib Afram, president of the Syriac League in Lebanon, told the Guardian. “We are witnessing the end of the Christian presence in the east."
Afram said many had fled to Hassakeh to take refuge. "They are not part of the struggle," he said, saying that the Assyrians had not been involved in any military operations. "We do not understand this targeting of Christians."
THE GUARDIAN | FAIZ NASHRILLAH
