The World Council of Churches (WCC) General Secretary, the Rev Dr Olav Fykse Tveit has issued a statement urging the international community to put an end to the “culture of impunity” in Syria. The statement followed news reports from Syria of an air strike that targeted the Kammouneh Syrian refugee camp on 7 May 2016 which killed at least 28 people and severely injured dozens of others.
“This outrage can in no way be considered as a military operation targeting armed groups, but clearly amounts to a war crime”, reads the statement. “This atrocity follows a tragic escalation of violence in Aleppo, where six hospitals have reportedly been deliberately shelled, leaving hundreds of people killed and wounded – among them babies, children, doctors and medical personnel.
The WCC underscored its long-held belief that all governments have an obligation to protect the lives and dignity of their citizens, and to protect their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
“This escalation of extreme violence is ethically unconscionable and condemnable especially when so many innocent and vulnerable people are targeted in this way,” reads the statement.
“The World Council of Churches, together with the churches in our fellowship, prays that our Lord receives all the victims in Syria in His mercy, and keeps their families and beloved ones in His Love, granting them courage and patience in their grieving.”
* Read the full statement here
* The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, by the end of 2012 the WCC had 345 member churches representing more than 500 million Christians from Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other traditions in over 110 countries. The WCC works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church.
* World Council of Churches http://www.oikoumene.org/en
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Diaspora*
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