Urgent Appeal from the Supreme Council of the Evangelical Community in Syria and Lebanon

To all the Evangelical and Protestant Churches and Organizations across the World

1.  We, the leaders of Evangelical and Protestant chuches and organizations affiliated to the Supreme Council of the Evangelical Community in Syria and Lebanon, have met together at this critical juncture of our history in order to reflect on the current situation, and on the tragic events that our people in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon are passing through.  We are most concerned over the great human suffering and political difficulties that our people in these countries are facing. We have deeply reflected upon this deteriorating state of affairs, and have been greatly disturbed and shocked by the ugly incidents of violence that innocent civilians and entire communities, especially Christian, have been subjected to.
2. We also write to you in solidarity with the various appeals and statements that have been issued by the leaders of our sister Eastern Churches, as well as by some Islamic groups, concerning the recent development of events in Iraq; and especially the forced displacement and murderous killings of individuals and groups by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), killings that verge on being a bona fide genocide.
3. We are also mindful of the catastrophic consequences of the bloody conflict that has plagued Syria for three years now. We are horrified by the amount of death, destruction and ongoing displacement that has ravaged vast sectors of the Syrian Society and population, including Christians, in all parts of the country.
4. Neither do we forget the recent violent eruptions and grave breaches of security that have occurred in Lebanon; incidents that have left a large number of victims.  The most serious of these is the ongoing violent conflict in the town of Ersal (north-east of the country). This is notwithstanding the grave consequences of the huge influx of Syrian and Iraqi refugees as well as the threat to attack churches in certain regions.
5. In view of all this, we are issuing this urgent appeal to inform you that the afore-mentioned factors, among others, have rendered the existential threat facing the future of Middle Eastern minorities, as well as moderate Muslim majorities in the region, a very real danger.

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