Syria's Christians ask 'Why us?' after Damascus suicide bombing

DAMASCUS - Syrian Christians were struggling on Monday to understand why their community was targeted in a suicide attack and whether they can rely on the Islamist-led government's assurances of protection.

Syria's health ministry said the toll from Sunday's attack on the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood had risen to 25 dead and more than 60 wounded.

The interior ministry said the suicide bomber was a member of Islamic State who entered the church, opened fire and detonated an explosive vest. There was no claim of responsibility by the Islamic State group.

On Monday, funeral announcements were posted on the door of the church. Members of the security forces stood outside it and other churches.

"I wonder why they target us. We had no interest in any of the events that happened in our country. We have no interests besides Syria living in peace," said Bassim Khoury, a Christian resident of Damascus.

"We did not carry weapons, we did not stand against anyone. We did not ask for government positions. None of us wants to become president, no one wants to run the government... Why would this happen to this peaceful people?"

The attack fed fears among Syria's minorities that their communities are more exposed to attacks and harassment since Islamist-led rebels toppled former leader Bashar al-Assad in December.

In March, hundreds of Alawites - the minority from which Assad hails - were killed in Syria's coastal provinces and dozens were kidnapped and killed in Damascus.

In May, an armed raid on a Damascus nightclub and the killing of a woman at another venue led some bars to close.

Christian residents of Damascus told Reuters that Muslim sheikhs had come to their neighbourhoods in the last six months to urge them to convert to Islam and to stop consuming alcohol.

SECURITY CONCERNS

The violence has prompted questions about whether Syria's new rulers have full control over armed elements despite promises by Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa - formerly a member of Al Qaeda - to rule inclusively for all of the diverse religious and ethnic groups.

"We're in a country that must protect everyone," said Jean Bahri, another Christian resident of Damascus.

Nibras Youssef, from Dweila, said people has already been on edge over the security situation, in which armed men and boys who said they were official security force members produced no relevant identification papers.

"You see a 13-year-old holding a weapon and you cannot say anything to them," said Youssef.

Sharaa expressed his condolences, calling Sonday's attack a "criminal bombing that hurt the whole Syrian people". Several Syrian ministers, as well as church leaders and other foreign officials, condemned the attacks.

Candlelit vigils and church services were held elsewhere in Syria in solidarity with the parishioners at Mar Elias.