The apostolic nuncio in Damascus - who turns 80 next January - is among the cardinals called to choose Bergoglio's successor. Despite the war and violence, he has never left his diplomatic mission or the Christian community. The ‘poverty bomb’, the tragedy of sanctions and the issue of the disappeared, which also affects the Syrian Church.
According to Amnesty International's report, 91 per cent of known death sentences have been handed down in Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. There is no reliable data for China, North Korea and Vietnam since the information is treated as a state secret. Iran has experienced a boom in executions, partly to crack down on protest. Governments have weaponised the death penalty under the pretext of improving security.
The announcement over the weekend by President al-Sharaa, who confirms the commitment to build ‘a new state’. He should remain in office for five years and lead the country to the writing of the new Constitution and the first post-Assad political elections. The Kurds have rejected the new government, denouncing the lack of (real) involvement of minorities.
At least seven deaths in a border area. The fragility of a frontier that has long been a free zone for trafficking and illicit trade. Fears of an escalation with the Jewish state and US manoeuvres for ‘normalisation’. In the spirit of the Abu Dhabi declaration, Christians and Muslims celebrate the feast of the Annunciation today.
Lebanon considers it ‘imperative’ that the Syrian refugees in the country, at least 1.5 million, be repatriated. The change of leadership in Damascus also changes their status. At the meeting of donor countries organised by the EU, the Foreign Minister calls for ‘stopping crisis management and starting to resolve the crisis’, starting with the sanctions that must be cancelled.
Kurdish and Druze conditional reintegration is an important sign for Ahmed al-Sharaa's Syria, despite great fragility. However, the draft constitution recognises Islamic law as the basis of legislation. Meanwhile, Israel tries to temp Druze in Suwayda. Alawite massacres cast a dark shadow.
