Priest stands up for visit to Damascus

A priest from a delegation of Christian leaders and peers who visited Damascus in the aftermath of last weekend’s air strikes has defended meeting Syrian regime officials.

Giles Fraser, a priest from Kennington in south-east London, joined church figures including the Reverend Andrew Ashdown and peers Baroness Cox and Lord Dykes for the trip.

The group were visiting the minority Christian community.

Their arrival on Saturday morning came just hours after the Syrian capital was hammered by a series of British-backed airstrikes targeting suspected chemical weapons facilities.

Mr Fraser said the delegation decided to push ahead with the trip despite the fraught political climate. He said: “We came at the invitation of the Syrian Orthodox Church. It was church people going to see church people.”