The service was held amid tight security due to concerns of violence against Christian sites, with several pickup cars belonging to the now-ruling Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) parked around the church.
People celebrate Christmas at the Damascus Christmas market on 24 December 2024. Source: Reuters / Mohammed al-Rifai/EPA
The pews of Lady of Damascus Church in Syria’s capital filled with a mixed congregation of young and old, holding candles as hymns filled the air and echoed through the church.
Carrying wooden crosses, they chanted: “We are your soldiers, Jesus”, “With blood and soul, we sacrifice for Jesus,” and “The Syrian people are one.”
Syrian Christians protested in Damascus after a Christmas tree was set on fire in Hama. Source: AAP / Hussein Malla/AP
Protester Laila Farkouh said: “We are protesting to demand our rights and denounce … The burning of the Christmas tree, and attacks on churches … We do not accept this.”
Although he is a former leader of the Sunni Muslim Islamist group that considers Christians infidels, Sharaa has quickly traded his olive-green military shirt for business suits in recent appearances.
Christians attend mass at the Greek Orthodox Convent Saint Takla in Maaloula, around 60km north-east of Damascus, on 24 December 2024. Source: AAP / Leo Correa/AP
Sharaa has told visiting Western officials that HTS will neither seek revenge against the former Assad regime, whose senior figures were drawn mostly from the Alawite sect of Islam, nor repress any other religious minority.
The Christmas tree burning was one of several incidents targeting Christians since the fall of the regime.
Two girls attend mass at the Mariamite Cathedral, one of the oldest churches in Damascus, on 22 December 2024. Source: AAP / Mohammed al-Rifa/EPA
On 18 December, unidentified gunmen opened fire at a Greek Orthodox church in the city of Hama, entering the compound and attempting to destroy a cross, and smashing headstones in a cemetery, the church said in a statement.
In a separate incident, Reuters reporters saw several SUVs driving through Bab Touma, a predominantly Christian neighbourhood of Damascus, blasting out jihadist songs from their speakers.