Martyrs Church (ar-Raqqa)

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The Armenian Catholic Martyrs Church ( Arabic كنيسة الشهداء, Armenian Նահատակաց եկեղեցի ) was a church of the Armenian Catholic Church in the Syrian city ​​of ar-Raqqa . It was destroyed during the rule of Islamist Daesh (IS) from 2013 to 2017 and the ruins were torn down in 2019. In 2020, construction work for a new building will take place on behalf of the Rojava administration .

Location

The church stood on the south side of al-Mogmaa Street (شارع المجمع) on the eastern corner of the "Kirchstrasse" (شارع الكنيسة).

history

In the already very old city of ar-Raqqa, Christianity hardly played a role in the centuries before the First World War . This changed at the beginning of the 20th century with the influx of Armenian and Assyrian refugees after the genocide of the Syrian Christians and the Armenians . The first Christians arrived in Raqqa in 1915 as refugees from Asia Minor, but were largely deported to the death camps of Deir ez-Zor in 1916 , while others were able to hide with the help of Muslim-Arab neighbors. After the end of the Ottoman Empire, the Christian population continued to grow, initially through refugees and in independent Syria through internal migration. In contrast to the cities of al-Hasakah , al-Qamishli and al-Malikiyah located further to the east , the Christians in Raqqa always formed a small minority. It is estimated that they made up around 1% of the population before the war. In interviews, some residents describe the relationship between Christians and Muslims before the war - similar to other cities in Syria - as good to warm, while others also speak of a greater intolerance of "bigoted Muslims". In Raqqa - unlike elsewhere in Syria - church bells could never be heard, as it was not customary in this city, which was never influenced by Christianity.

The Catholic Martyrs Church in ar-Raqqa - named after the martyrs of the genocide - opened in 1970. It was one of only three Christian churches in the city: The Melkite Greek Catholic Church of the Annunciation (al-Bishara,البشارة) was in the immediate vicinity, and there was also the Armenian Apostolic Church, which was located within a school (Madrasat al-Hurriya, "School of Freedom",مدرسة الحرية) found. The Armenian Catholic Martyrs Church was also used by the Syrian Orthodox community. The Armenian Catholics , who have always made up a minority among the Armenians in Syria (and elsewhere), numbered 500 families by 1990. Massive emigration caused the community to shrink to 50 families even before the civil war, but there was still a church service every Sunday.

In the civil war in Syria since 2011 , the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham took ar-Raqqa in March 2013, but Daesh (IS) took power from August 2013 . On September 16, the cross fell from the top of the church, and in its place the Daesh flag fluttered . The church building became the seat of a Sharia court and the Hisbah moral police. From June 2017 massive attacks began against the Daesh-ruled Raqqa, and on October 17, 2017 the secular democratic forces of Syria , supported mainly by the Kurdish People's Defense Units (YPG), announced the conquest of the city. Both the Martyrs' Church and the Church of the Annunciation were in ruins, the latter being razed to the ground by aerial bombs. Local residents reported that Daesh had willfully blown up both churches beforehand. Given the widespread destruction and the threat posed by Islamist terrorists, very few Armenians and other Christians are willing to return to Raqqa. Therefore the Armenian Catholic Church does not currently intend to resume its services in Raqqa. Persistent terrorist attacks such as the murder of the Armenian Catholic pastor of St. Joseph's Cathedral in al-Qamishli, Father Hovsep Hanna Bedoyan, on November 12, 2019 near Deir ez-Zor cause great fear.

Nevertheless, the Rojava administration in Raqqa announced through its news agency Ajansa Nûçeyan a Firatê (ANF) its intention to rebuild all mosques and churches in ar-Raqqa, with special attention being paid to the Martyrs Church, the largest church in Raqqa. In August 2019, the remains of the destroyed church were removed and the administration announced that a new church would be built on the foundations. In December 2019, the place was largely cleared. The administration stuck to their plans, although according to Armenian reports there was only one Armenian Catholic family left in Raqqa. According to the Kurdish administration in August 2019, however, 40 Armenian families had returned to the city. Pictures on Twitter from May 2020 show a construction site at the location of the Martyr's Church, on which parts of a new reinforced concrete building are already visible.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Wilson subject: Syria's Armenians are under assault yet again. The National, December 26, 2019.
  2. ↑ a b c d Samuel Sweeney: Life under ISIS: Raqqa's Christians tell their story. Catholic Herald, May 2, 2019.
  3. ↑ Delil Souleiman: This Christmas, Raqqa's churches demined but deserted. Armenians and Syriac Christians, who once made up 1% of the city's population, have no plans to hold services this year. Times of Israel, December 22, 2017.
  4. ↑ a b Samer Hanna, in: Alexandra Tawaifi: Syria's Hidden Victims - Samer Hanna. Catholic News Agency, February 21, 2020.
  5. ^ A b Holy Martyrs Armenian Catholic Church. Aid to the Church in Need , ACN International. Christians of Syria, ACN Syria, accessed June 21, 2020.
  6. ^ Separation of Christian families in Raqqa since the Islamic State control. NPA Syria, January 11, 2020.
  7. ↑ Images on: Syria's Kessab: The Devastation of an Armenian Safe Haven. Syria Solidarity Movement, April 26, 2014.
  8. ↑ Last bastions fallen. ORF online, October 17, 2017.
  9. ^ Raffi Elliott: Armenian Catholic Priest Killed in Syria, Armenian Community Targeted. November 12, 2019.
  10. ↑ a b Churches in Raqqa being restored. Ajansa Nûçeyan a Firatê (ANF) English, August 20, 2019.
  11. ^ Rehabilitation Of The First Church In Al-Raqqa. Syrian Democratic Forces Press, August 17, 2019.
  12. ↑ Video from today showing the wonderful reconstruction work of the Armenian Catholic Martyrs' Church in Raqqa. Twitter (Rebuilding Syria @SyriaRebuilt) February 5 to May 5, 2020, accessed June 21, 2020.

Coordinates: 35 ° 56 ′ 57.3 ″  N , 39 ° 0 ′ 37.5 ″  E ,