Islamist rebels seek to assure Christians in Syria's Aleppo

At a church in Syria's Aleppo, Christian worshippers attended mass days after their city came under the control of Islamist-led rebel forces who have sought to allay residents' concerns over their nascent rule.

"Despite the circumstances in Aleppo, we made sure to celebrate Saint Barbara's feast as we do every year," said 60-year-old Therese Kalaghasi.

"We pray for peace in our country," she said during mass at the Armenian Catholic Saint Barbara Church in the predominantly Christian district of Sulamaniyeh.

Rebels led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured Aleppo last week in a lightning offensive against President Bashar al-Assad's forces, raising fears in Syria's second-largest city.

The majority of Aleppo's two million residents are Muslim but the city also has a Christian minority, which has declined since the Syrian civil war began in 2011.

In his sermon to the few dozen worshippers, Archbishop Boutros Marayati sought to reassure them.

"Do not fear, dear brothers. We have received assurances from all parties. Continue living normally, and everything will remain as before, even better," he said.

At the start of the civil war, an estimated 200,000 Christians, including 50,000 Armenians, lived in Aleppo.

Today, Christian community leaders say their number has fallen to about 30,000, with only 10,000 Armenians, due to massive emigration.

HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, who visited Aleppo's landmark citadel on Wednesday, urged his fighters to "calm the concerns of our people, from all communities", in a statement on Telegram.

"Aleppo has always been a meeting point for civilisations and cultures, and it will remain so, with a long history of cultural and religious diversity," he said.

- 'Here to help us' -

Jolani also called on the residents of Mahardeh, a predominantly Christian town in central Syria, not to flee as his fighters attacked the nearby city of Hama.

"We will ensure your protection and safeguard your property," he said in a statement.

Some in Aleppo said the situation since the HTS takeover has been far more reassuring than anticipated.

"To our great surprise, the behaviour of the new occupiers of Aleppo is completely different from what we expected," said one resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"All the speeches they give are to say that they are not here to make us suffer. They are here to help us. They say, 'All we want is to overthrow Assad's regime'," he added.

"People who were afraid are starting to go out, and life is beginning to resume."

A source in the Christian community said that, after entering the city, rebel representatives went to a convent and a hospital run by religious figures to reassure them they meant no harm.

Syria's Christian community has generally supported the Assad government since the start of the civil war, with the president, himself from the minority Alawite sect, positioning himself as a protector of minorities.

Cardinal Mario Zenari, apostolic nuncio to Damascus, called for the protection of Syria's Christians amid the renewed fighting since last week, in a statement to an Italian media outlet.

The community suffered when the jihadist Islamic State (IS) group overran large parts of Syria.

IS targeted Christians, resorting to mass kidnappings and the destruction of churches, before being defeated in 2019.