Bishops Visit Aoun over Fate of Christians in Orient
A delegation of bishops visited Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun in Rabieh on Tuesday to discuss with him the conditions of Christians in the Orient.
The delegation included bishops Issam Darwish, George Saliba, Boulos Safar and Rweiss al-Orashalimi.
There are fears among religious minorities in both Syria and Iraq, who have been repeatedly targeted by the Islamic State group.
During the militants' bloody campaign in both countries, where they have declared a self-styled caliphate, minorities, including Christians, have been repeatedly targeted and killed, driven from their homes, had their women enslaved and places of worship destroyed.
The abductions of more than 220 Christian Assyrians by the IS in northeastern Syria last week have added to the existing fears.
IS and al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front are entrenched on Lebanon's eastern border region.
“Christians shouldn't be dealt with this way,” Aoun said after meeting the bishops.
“There is a systematic eradication of Christians in the Orient,” he said.
He added that the Christians are suffering from the same misery they witnessed under the Ottoman empire.
Aoun also urged the international community to use its conscience in resolving the problem.
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