Aid in response to Syrian Christians' pleas
Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow - 5/17/2012 3:35:00 AM
Christians in Syria represent one of the biggest minority groups in the Middle East, but they are caught in the middle of clashes between the government and so-called Freedom Fighters. Open Doors USA tells OneNewsNow about Homs.
"Homs, of course, has been the target of savage bombing campaigns by the government," explains Jerry Dykstra, media relations director for the ministry. "The Christians there have also been under siege obviously and many of them have been driven out. We estimated 40,000 to 50,000 Christians there -- now there's less than 5,000 remaining."
And lately Muslim extremists have been going to Christian homes in the city, telling people to leave or be killed. Open Doors USA is shipping aid to the area, working through local churches.
"... We're providing packages and that includes food and medical supplies, water and so forth," Dykstra adds, "and we're providing that to about 7,000 refugee families, some of the families who are in the worst shape."
Opens Doors USA will continue programs already in place such as biblical training, trauma counseling, and discipleship training. Dykstra points out that most of the Christian families, unlike Christians in Iraq, want to stay but find it impossible to provide for themselves.
