#maalula

Former President Jimmy Carter and President Assad visit the Saint Taqla convent in the city of Maalula...

Maaloula et les tombes troglodytes

SYRIA, MAALULA : Children play on a swing in the park of the Safir Maalula Hotel, in the ancient Christian town of Maalula, 56 kilometers northeast of the Syrian capital Damascus, on December 20, 2014. AFP PHOTO / YOUSSEF KARWASHAN

Maalula (Syria) (AFP) - Syria's President Bashar al-Assad paid an Easter Sunday visit to a historic Christian town newly recaptured from jihadist-backed rebels as opposition fighters counter-attacked his forces in a key battleground city. The surprise visit to Maalula, just north of Damascus, came as Pope Francis said in his Easter message that it was time for warring parties to "boldly negotiate" peace in Syria after three years of conflict estimated to have killed 150,000 people. Assad's regime has sought to portray itself as the protector of religious minorities from foreign-backed extremists, a notion his opponents dismiss as part of a divide-and-rule strategy also aimed at deterring Western support for rebels. State television showed Assad, who has rarely appeared in public during the conflict, visiting Maalula's Saint Sergius and Bacchus monastery damaged by "terrorists" -- his regime's term for its armed opponents. Source: AFP

Maalula (Syria) (AFP) - Residents of Maalula returned to the historic Christian town on Sunday to mark Easter, glad that the Syrian army freed it from rebel control but pained at the widespread destruction. As they strolled into the picturesque town, flanked by reporters on a government-organised tour, President Bashar al-Assad also paid a rare visit less than a week after his troops recaptured Maalula. Ruba, a Christian woman in her 20s, cast her eyes over the destruction of her one-time home and said: "Maalula is ours again even though it is destroyed." One of the Middle East's oldest Christian settlements, Maalula was caught up in Syria's brutal conflict because of its strategic location in the Qalamun mountains. Source: AFP

Maalula (Syria) (AFP) - Syria's President Bashar al-Assad paid an Easter Sunday visit to a historic Christian town newly recaptured from Islamists, as rebels counter-attacked his forces in the key battleground city of Homs. The surprise visit to Maalula, just north of Damascus, came as Pope Francis said in his Easter message that it was time for warring parties to "boldly negotiate" peace in Syria after three years of conflict estimated to have killed 150,000 people. Assad's regime has sought to portray itself as the protector of religious minorities against a revolt led by foreign-backed extremists, a notion his opponents dismiss as part of a divide-and-rule strategy also aimed at deterring Western support for rebels. State television said that Assad, who has rarely appeared in public during the conflict, had visited Maalula's Saint Sergius and Bacchus monastery damaged by "terrorists" -- his regime's term for its armed opponents. Source: AFP

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Easter Sunday visited the ancient Christian town of Maalula, which his troops recently recaptured from rebels, state television said. "On the day of the resurrection of Christ, and from the heart of Maalula, President Assad hopes all Syrians have a happy Easter, and for the reestablishment of peace and security throughout Syria," the channel announced in a caption at the bottom of the screen, without showing images of the visit. It added that Assad had inspected the Mar Sarkis (Saint Sergius and Bacchus) monastery, damaged in recent fighting. The Facebook page of the Syrian presidency posted a picture of Assad standing next to a Christian priest. Source: AFP

Maalula (Syria) (AFP) - Syrian troops retook the ancient Christian town of Maalula from rebels Monday, a day after President Bashar al-Assad said the three-year old civil war was turning in his favour. During the operation, Al-Manar television, the broadcaster of Assad's close Lebanese ally Hezbollah, said three of its staffers were killed. "The army has taken full control of Maalula and restored security and stability. Terrorism has been defeated in Qalamun," a security official said. Source: AFP