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Sanctions should not harm the support for the most vulnerable, says a report on the impact of sanctions on humanitarian work presented at a side-event of 52nd session at the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in Geneva on 10 March.

Following the devastating Turkey-Syria earthquake on 6 February, the presidents of the Middle East Council of Churches held an emergency meeting to discuss the disaster and how to respond.

In a congratulatory letter, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed great joy and gratitude over the appointment of Archbishop Mor Anthimos Jack Yakoub as the patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem, Jordan, and the Holy Land by His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II.

H.E. Mor Boutros Kassis, who has been serving the community for the last seven years as a temporary bishop, was installed as archbishop of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Aleppo on 15 October.

In a joint letter to President Joe Biden, the World Council of Churches (WCC) and ACT Alliance urged that he find ways in which the intended purposes of sanctions can be pursued without harm being inflicted on ordinary Syrians.

As Patriarch John X headed the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Cross church in Damascus in Syria, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca shared a message on behalf of a WCC-led delegation visiting the country for the first time since 2008.

As the ninth anniversary of the abduction of the archbishops of Aleppo approaches, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca invited prayer for the safe return of the two religious leaders, as well as others missing amid conflicts and crises.

On 5 April, World Council of Churches (WCC) leadership and staff met with representatives of WCC member churches from Syria, who came to the Bossey Ecumenical Institute for consultations on the WCC’s longstanding programmatic work relating to Syria. WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, was the convener of the meeting.

World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca reiterated calls for the release of two Syrian archbishops, Syriac Orthodox Archbishop Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek Orthodox Archbishop Paul Yazigi, who were kidnapped near Aleppo, Syria in April 2013.

In a letter to the UN Security Council, World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed grave concern over the impending expiry on 10 July of the resolution allowing cross-border humanitarian assistance to North West Syria.

The Middle East Council of Churches issued a statement related to the case and fate of two Archbishops, Boulos Yaziji and Mor Gregorius Youhanna Ibrahim, who were kidnapped on 22 April 2013.

In the aftermath of armed attacks by both the US and Iran, WCC reiterates its call for restraint and de-escalation of the confrontation.
“Further escalation and conflict between the United States and Iran can only serve short-term political interests, while threatening the permanent destruction of many lives, communities and precious cultural and environmental heritage,” said World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit. “I appeal to political leaders on all sides of this confrontation to put the interests of the people of the region ahead of their own interests, and to seek peace through dialogue and negotiation rather than confrontation.”

At the end of the second week of Advent, WCC staff gathered in the Chapel of the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva for a special midday prayer for peace in Syria and the Middle East led by Father Jack (Yaqoub) Mourad, head of the Syriac Catholic Monastery of Saint Elian in al-Qaryatayn.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Executive Committee raised prayers for an end to conflict and for peace in Syria, after more than eight tragic years of death, destruction and displacement.

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit expressed great hopes for the success of the work of the Syrian Constitutional Committee, which has begun its work this week.

Faith leaders across the USA released on 9 July a jointly signed statement entitled “Back from the Brink: Faith leaders call for diplomacy, not war, with Iran.”

Restoring human dignity where people suffer most is the ultimate calling for churches in the Middle East and their partners worldwide, stated an annual partners meeting of the Middle East Council of Churches held in Ain el Qassis, Lebanon this week.

Rev. Raban Gabriel Dahho was consecrated on 10 April as the new archbishop for Jerusalem, the Holy Land and Jordan at the hands of His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syrian Orthodox Church. The consecration took place at St Ephraim Cathedral in Amman, Jordan.