A group of Christian leaders will provide a letter to President Trump on Monday morning calling on him and leaders in Congress to act on behalf of the Christians being persecuted in Syria.
The letter, spearheaded by Dede Laugesen of Save the Persecuted Christians, will be delivered before Mr. Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa later that day
The group will ask the president to address the Syrian leader directly about the massacre of religious minorities, including Christians, Kurds, Druze and Alawites in his country.
The leaders thank Mr. Trump for his “recent leadership in combating Christian persecution in Nigeria,” calling him “the only major world leader fighting for religious freedom.”
They argue that Syria is another case in which “we need you once again to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.”
They note that religious minorities in Syria “face ongoing violence, death, displacement, starvation, and water and medical deprivation, all while innocent women and children are held hostage by ISIS terrorists.”
The letter includes signatures from over 50 Christian activists and leaders, including Tony Perkins, Matthew Faraci, fomer HUD secretary Ben Carson, former Sen. Sam Brownback, Matthew Crouch, Eric Metaxas, Jack Hibbs, Alveda King, Ralph Reed, Jack Graham, Samuel Rodriguez, Kevin Sorbo, Rob McCoy, Mike Farris, Lorenzo Sewell and Gary Bauer.
The Christian leaders wrote in their letter that they are “grateful” for the administration’s recent announcement that the U.S. is sending humanitarian aid to southern Syria, but with winter approaching more needs to be done.
“Mr. President, we respectfully request that you secure President al-Sharaa’s commitment to opening a secure humanitarian corridor from Hader to Suwayda in southern Syria,” they said.
“This corridor will enable safe and secure aid delivery and civilian evacuation, signaling the new government’s commitment to minority rights and stability.”
The Trump administration has removed sanctions on Mr. al-Sharaa ahead of his meeting with President Trump on Monday.
Mr. Trump said that he had moved to lift sanctions “to give them a fighting shot, and I think (al-Sharaa’s) doing a very good job so far.”
“It’s a tough neighborhood and he’s a tough guy, but I got along with him very well, and a lot of progress has been made with Syria,” he said.
On Thursday, the United Nations Security Council voted to remove Mr. al-Sharaa from a terrorism sanctions list.
The resolution was drafted and advanced by the U.S., and it passed with 14 Security Council members voting in its favor. China abstained from the vote.
In July, the State Department revoked the $10 million bounty on Mr. al-Sharaa and revoked the terrorist designation on Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
Mr. al-Sharra will be the first Syrian president ever to visit the White House, where he is expected to join a coalition to fight the Islamic State, a designated terrorist organization.
Last August, hundreds of representatives of Syria’s various ethnic and religious groups called for the formation of a decentralized state and the drafting of a new constitution that guarantees religious, cultural and ethnic pluralism.
In their statements, the representatives condemned recent acts of violence by pro-government gunmen against the country’s minorities — primarily Alawites, Druze and Christians — and argued that these amount to crimes against humanity.
Violence against minorities following the December fall of the Assad family dynasty has killed hundreds of people and sent shockwaves throughout the country.
The violence happened despite promises from Mr. al-Sharaa, a former leader of al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, that all Syrians would be treated equally.
This article was based in part on wire-service reports.
