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Syrian Islamist Rebels Threaten Maaloula, Christians

The Aramaic-speaking  village of Maaloula, a symbol of religious and sectarian coexistence in Syria, has been invaded and desecrated by Islamist opposition groups.
A Syrian woman holds a banner for saving Maaloula while Lebanese and Syrian Christian Maronites pray for peace in Syria, in Harisa, Jounieh September 7, 2013. REUTERS/Hasan Shaaban (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTX13C2S
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After the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations approved President Barack Obama’s plan to strike Syria, armed extremist Islamists entered the Syrian town of Maaloula, located to the northeast of Damascus.

Maaloula does not hold a strategic position in the equation of the currently ongoing armed conflict in the outskirts of Damascus, which is aimed at gaining control of the capital. This town enjoys a remarkable historical significance, however, as it stands witness to the tolerance of Syrian society and its “Eastern civilization” — which traces its roots back centuries.

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