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Alice Offline OP
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Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and Pope Francis have adopted a joint statement over the worsening situation in Syria, the Moscow Patriarchate said on Tuesday. Citing the increased international tension, the statement said that the ongoing hostilities in the Middle East, which in recent years have claimed the lives of many thousands of people and forced millions to flee, “now threaten to escalate into a global conflict.”
The patriarch and the pope said “the world has approached a dangerous line – a real failure in international relations and cooperation.” They warned that the horrors of the world wars of the last century cannot be compared with “how catastrophic the consequences of a world war can be today.”
The statement appealed to all world leaders to recognize their responsibility and urged them “not to allow further escalation of tension, to avoid confrontation and take the path of dialogue.”


https://www.rt.com/newsline/424410-patriarch-pope-syria-conflict/


Pray for peace. Pray for Syria, a country where Christians and Muslim sects coexist and cooperate like no other place in the world.

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There is no such "joint statement". At most you might say they had a phone conversation. Of course RT are not exactly sticklers for accuracy.

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Alice Offline OP
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Sharply criticizing a failure to find nonviolent means of bringing peace to Syria and other parts of the world, Pope Francis appealed to world leaders to work for justice and peace.

"I am deeply disturbed by the current world situation, in which, despite the instruments available to international community, it struggles to agree on joint action in favor of peace in Syria and other regions of the world," he said after praying the "Regina Coeli" with people gathered in St. Peter's Square April 15.

"While I unceasingly pray for peace and invite all people of good will to keep doing the same, I appeal once again to all political leaders so that justice and peace may prevail," he said.

The pope's appeal came after the United States, France and the United Kingdom launched missiles on Syria April 13, targeting sites intended to weaken the nation's chemical weapons capability. The missile strikes came one week after an alleged chemical attack in the Ghouta region, outside Damascus.

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow telephoned Pope Francis after the missile attack, he told reporters April 15 at his residence outside of Moscow.

"We shared the common concern about the situation in Syria, and we talked about how Christians should influence this situation to stop violence, war and so many tragic victims as we have seen in these days," he said, according to AsiaNews.

The patriarchate launched an initiative to unite Christian leaders from the East and West to promote peace and prevent a humanitarian crisis in Syria, said Father Aleksandr Volkov, spokesman for the Russian patriarchate.

Christians "cannot be silent when things like those of these days are taking place in Syria," Patriarch Kirill said.

Other patriarchs taking part included Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria and Greek Orthodox Patriarch John X of Antioch and all the East, according to Patriarch Kirill.


"Each of them has expressed a willingness to continue consultations to find a way to stop the bloodshed," he added.

The Syrian Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs of Syria also publicly condemned the "brutal aggression" of the U.S.-led allied missile attack and called upon all churches in the countries that participated to likewise condemn the attack and urge their governments to work toward international peace.

In a statement issued April 14 from the Syrian capital of Damascus -- the patriarchal seats of their respective churches -- the patriarchs said they "condemn and denounce the brutal aggression that took place this morning against our precious country Syria by the U.S.A., France and the U.K., under the allegations that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons."

The statement was signed by Melkite Catholic Patriarch Joseph Absi; Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II and Greek Orthodox Patriarch John. The brother of Patriarch John X -- Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Boulos Yazii -- is one of two bishops who were kidnapped near the Syrian city of Aleppo April 22, 2013, and whose fate is still unknown.

Referring to the April 14 air strikes, the Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs said the timing of "this unjustified aggression against Syria" undermines the work of the independent International Commission for Inquiry, which was about to carry out its investigation in Syria into the alleged chemical attack.

"The allegations of the U.S.A. and other countries that the Syrian army is using chemical weapons and that Syria is a country that owns and uses this kind of weapon, is a claim that is unjustified and unsupported by sufficient and clear evidence," the Christian leaders said.

"This brutal aggression is a clear violation of the international laws and the U.N. Charter, because it is an unjustified assault on a sovereign country," the patriarchs said of the April 14 air strikes, emphasizing that Syria is a member of the United Nations.

"It causes us great pain that this assault comes from powerful countries to which Syria did not cause any harm in any way," they said.

The Syrian Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs warned that the "unjust aggression" of April 14 encourages terrorist organizations "and gives them momentum to continue in their terrorism."

"This brutal aggression destroys the chances for a peaceful political solution and leads to escalation and more complications," they said. The patriarchs urged the U.N. Security Council "to play its natural role in bringing peace rather than contribute to escalation of wars."

"We call upon all churches in the countries that participated in the aggression to fulfill their Christian duties, according to the teachings of the Gospel, and condemn this aggression and to call their governments to commit to the protection of international peace," the Syrian Catholic and Orthodox prelates said.

The Christian leaders commended the Syrian Arab Army, "which courageously protects Syria and provides security for its people," and offered prayers for the victims of the April 14 missile strikes.

"We are confident that the army will not bow before the external or internal terrorist aggressions; they will continue to fight courageously against terrorism until every inch of the Syrian land is cleansed from terrorism. We, likewise, commend the brave stand of countries which are friendly to Syria and its people," the patriarchs concluded.

https://www.osv.com/OSVNewsweekly/A...demn-use-of-violence-against-Syria-.aspx

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I cannot imagine anything that would meet the notion of a "just war" if the destruction of facilities used to produce chemical weapons and are controlled by those who use them on civilians doesn't qualify . . .

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If the strike is based on, at best, murky intelligence and corrupt motives, it most certainly is not just. In the case of the alleged attacks in Ghouta, an attack was launched before any solid evidence was obtained. To date, the story has continually gotten murkier, which is why the Western media has largely dropped it. Now they are saying, maybe it wasn't sarin, but chlorine. Or maybe it was both sarin or chlorine. Or maybe it was something else.

There have also been reports of the jihadist "rebels" using chlorine gas. The UN's Carla del Ponte reported evidence that some of these groups had obtained sarin. These inconvenient facts are routinely forgotten or ignored.

Reagan and friends encouraged and even facilitated (with intelligence) Saddam Hussein's use of chemical weapons against the Iranians. So the US has no problem with chemical weapon use when it is to our advantage.

In light of the jihadist groups' propensity to lie and distort, and US intelligence's propensity to magnify these lies for geopolitical aims, it is not only reasonable but a simple duty to meet these reports with skepticism. One thing everyone forgets- the rebels' first allegation of chemical weapon use by the Syrian government turned out to be completely bogus, as the US State Department itself admitted: https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/...t-that-syria-used-a-hallucinogen-weapon/

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The situation in Syria is far from clear-cut. The statements of the patriarchs, while understandable, is also one-sided and wrong in its condemnations. Yes, we understand that the Assad regime - pursuing a French-style secularist model - has been protective of and good for the Christian minority. However, it is one thing to praise the regime for te good it has done, but it is decidedly wrong to attack the United States and allied nations attempting to protect those who are innocent in ths civil war. Yes, I agree it was the United States' under the Obama regime that inserted itself into the intenernal affars of a sovereign nation and was one of causes of the present quagmire. However, though well intended it was poorly conceived or executed.

Having served as military chapain to the very intelligence services that are accused of, i.e. "US intelligence's propensity to magnify these lies for geopolitical aims, it is not only reasonable but a simple duty to meet these reports with skepticism"is, may I get;y point out, misdirected. The "intelligence services" proved data, the conclusions and responses are made by those higher up in "the food chain" and by the administration and elected officials.

Intelligence information is usually a "mish-mash" of conflicting information from a variety of sources with varting degrees of credibility out which an attempt is made to "turn on the fog-lights" and provide a somewhat clearer view of events - and all of this in a reasonable time frame. Are errors sometimes made? Yes! Does self-interest and/or prejudices cloud sources? Yes! Are the intelligence services sometimes duped by othere? Also, yes! But are our intelligence people honest, hardworking people trying to serve the best interest. Also, decidedly yes!

For example: President George W Bush made decisions regarding Sadam Hussein based upon some pretty obvious raw intelligence inputs regarding weapons of mad destruction that came from British intelligence and some other pretty impeccable sources. Years later it turns out that the "intelligence" actually was misinformation planted by the Mossad, the intelligence service of our erstwhile "friend" - the State of Israel! Looking back, and having seen some of the same raw "intelligence" myself, Frankly I would have made the same decisions myself.

I understand and appreciate concern of the patriarchs, however, their attacks on the coalition nations is unwarranted and below the dignity of their offices which are supposed to transcend national boundaries.

PS May I also point out that one Catholic patriarch did not sign the document - Syrian Catholic HB IGNATIOS JOSEPH III, the former Syrian Catholic bishop of Newark, New Jersey, who is also an American citizen!

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Originally Posted by Protopappas76
The situation in Syria is far from clear-cut. The statements of the patriarchs, while understandable, is also one-sided and wrong in its condemnations. Yes, we understand that the Assad regime - pursuing a French-style secularist model - has been protective of and good for the Christian minority. However, it is one thing to praise the regime for te good it has done, but it is decidedly wrong to attack the United States and allied nations attempting to protect those who are innocent in ths civil war. Yes, I agree it was the United States' under the Obama regime that inserted itself into the intenernal affars of a sovereign nation and was one of causes of the present quagmire. However, though well intended it was poorly conceived or executed.

The US is not "attempting to protect those who are innocent." It is arming and funding some of the most bloodthirsty jihadist killers in the world. Nice try though.

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But are our intelligence people honest, hardworking people trying to serve the best interest. Also, decidedly yes!

If that were true, there would be many, many more people like John Kiriakou.

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For example: President George W Bush made decisions regarding Sadam Hussein based upon some pretty obvious raw intelligence inputs regarding weapons of mad destruction that came from British intelligence and some other pretty impeccable sources. Years later it turns out that the "intelligence" actually was misinformation planted by the Mossad, the intelligence service of our erstwhile "friend" - the State of Israel! Looking back, and having seen some of the same raw "intelligence" myself,.

So it was the Mossad's fault but not that of our own intelligence people and politicians for swallowing uncritically their fake intelligence. That's pretty lame.
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Frankly I would have made the same decisions myself

That is disturbing and disheartening to hear.

Many years to the patriarchs, for cutting through US hypocrisy.


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