His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia has condemned in the strongest terms the suicide bombing at the Greek Orthodox Church of Prophet Elijah in Damascus, Syria, which claimed at least 25 lives and injured more than 60 others during a Sunday church service.
The Archbishop described the attack as an assault on humanity and called on world leaders to take concrete action to protect religious minorities.
“Every person who is appalled by such heinous acts, regardless of the faith they follow, has a solemn duty to stand up against… intolerance and the scourge of blind violence and terrorism,” he said in a public statement on Instagram.
“All the more so do the powerful of this world, political leaders and governments, who hold in their hands the destiny of entire nations, and are duty bound to uphold the conditions of peaceful coexistence,” he added.
Archbishop Makarios said the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia is mourning the victims and praying for the recovery of the injured, stressing that “Christianity is being persecuted and no one speaks of it.”
He expressed solidarity with His Beatitude Patriarch John X and stated that he is united with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in calling for “an immediate end to the massacres of Christians and for the tangible protection of minorities in Syria.”
The Archbishop’s statement follows a wave of international condemnation after a gunman entered the Prophet Elias Church in the Dweil’a district of Damascus, opened fire on the congregation, and then detonated an explosive vest during Divine Liturgy. The attack was the deadliest in the Syrian capital in years and has been blamed by Syrian authorities on the Islamic State (IS) group.
Images from the church show shattered pews, bloodstained icons, and a devastated altar. Father Fadi Ghattas said around 350 people had been attending the service when the bombing occurred.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the attack a “heinous crime” and demanded that the perpetrators be held accountable. His special envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, and other UN officials echoed the call for justice and renewed international efforts to protect civilians.
The Ecumenical Patriarchate also condemned the bombing, with Patriarch Bartholomew calling it “an assault against the peaceful coexistence of peoples, religions, and cultures.” He offered condolences to the families of the victims and reaffirmed support for the Christian community in Syria.
As Syria continues to recover from years of civil war and faces new political uncertainty under interim leadership, minority communities have voiced growing fears over rising extremism and the lack of adequate security.
At the bombed church’s vigil, Father Semaan Ayoub reflected on the community’s grief: “We’ve heard of such attacks, but now we have felt the pain of it. We are peaceful people. We won’t respond to evil with evil.”
