Fate of Christians in the Syria conflict

Sir — As a Middle East historian, I was appalled to read Dr Joseph O’Neill’s inaccurate letter about Syria and Israel (Letters, Sunday Independent, December 4).

He begins by saying that Syria “has been under occupation and attack by the Israeli regime for decades”. Syria has never once been occupied by Israel, nor has Israel ever attacked Syria (though Syria has attacked Israel in 1948, 1967, and 1973). And there is no “Israeli regime”, since Israel is one of the strongest democracies in the world.

“Syria had a Christian population of 1pc before the civil war.” It was 10pc. The war has forced 30pc of Syrian Christians to flee the country (and many have been killed by Isil).

More disturbingly, Dr O’Neill writes “Israel has reduced its Christian Palestinian population to less than 2pc, due to its brutal oppression”. In fact, Israel is the only country in the Middle East whose Christian population has grown since 1948 (vastly, by 1,000pc).

There is no oppression of Christians there: this is the only country in the Middle East and far beyond where Christians (like other religious minorities) have complete freedom to worship, to build churches, to retain their holy sites, to vote, and to have complete freedom of speech.

Quite bluntly, there is no “brutal oppression” in Israel, nor ever has been. The Christian populations of Gaza (now zero) and the West Bank have all sunk rapidly. Bethlehem, originally a mainly Christian town, is now predominantly Muslim. This is true for Lebanon and Iraq, too.

Dr O’Neill speaks about Russia and the Syrian regime defending Syria’s “diverse population” “from terrorists funded by the apartheid regime and others”. I assume that by “apartheid regime” he means Israel. There is not a trace of apartheid in Israel and it is doing everything to stay out of the civil war, apart from treating thousands of Syrian refugees in its own hospitals.

Christians are persecuted, slaughtered, and forced into exile across the Arab world and far beyond, and far too little is being done to put an end to it.

Dr Denis MacEoin, Newcastle upon Tyne,

UK