Ras al-Ain’s Christians reject Turkish threats against their region

People of Ras al-Ain (Sere-Kaniye) in northeastern Syria, specifically the Christian component are watching the outcomes of the Turkish threats, the military and political situation in the region cautiously, despite their refusal of all those threats, Turkey on the other side of the border continues to create and pose instability and unlimited fears.

History and Roots 
The previous entry of the armed groups under the banner of “Free Syrian Army” on November 8, 2012, caused the displacement of the majority of the Christian population from the city of Ras al-Ain, which the Syriac Arameans call “Rash Eino”, where now, it’s only home to 50 families from three Christian denominations.
In modern times, the roots of the Christians in the city date back to hundred years, after their displacement from northern territories, because of the massacres of “Seyfo” and the Armenian Genocide, which were committed by the Ottoman state, as the Turkish government still refuses to admit to the killing of hundreds of thousands of Armenians and Syriacs by the Ottoman Turks.
Pursuit of occupation and a Christian refusal 
The remaining Christians in Ras al-Ain refuse the Turkish threats against their city, which locates within the proposed “security mechanism” areas, which is being implemented in accordance to a U.S.-Turkish agreement.
Amira Hennawi, an old Syriac Orthodox lady told North-Press that the region is in a state of “peace and harmony among its various components, but it’s disturbed by the anxiety and tension caused by the Turkish threats to invade the region, it (Turkey) seeks to occupy and annex the Syrian territories”.
In her speech, Hennawi fears that “the Christians will abandon their city, as it happened during the entry of the Syrian armed opposition groups in late 2012”. 
The old lady recalled the memory of her ancestors who were subjected to massacres under the Ottoman state, noting that the procedures of the “security mechanism” didn’t affect their daily lives in their current form. 

Refusal of settling 
The Christian component doesn’t forget what the country has been subjected to for 8 years, from the interventions of many countries, most notably Turkey, Abdul Ahad Abdul Ahad, a resident of Ras al-Ain refused the Turkish policies, which seek to settle millions of Syrian refugees in northeastern Syria. 
On the other hand, Abdul Ahad didn’t show any objection or refusal to the return of people of the region to their villages and towns, while he believes that the United States has long-term military and political interests in the region, and that Turkey wouldn’t dare to launch a unilateral military operation, as long as there is an American flag in the region”, according to him.

Freedom of Religious Rites
Among the remaining Christians in the city, there are several Armenian families, including Freij Kashishian, who told North-Press that “as a small parish, they practice their lives and religious rituals freely”.
“The parish meets every Sunday in the church, which dates back to the 10th century, and as an Armenian community, they live their own lives according to their own customs and traditions”. 
While the interaction and openness of Ras al-Ain community is seen “as a feature which doesn’t make them feel as few as they are”, as he said. 
For his part, Kashishian refuses the international interventions in the Syrian affairs, especially the Turkish intervention, noting at the end of his speech that they “call for love and peace and we, like the rest of the Syrian people, aspire to live in peace”.
Between the reduced number of families remaining in the city since the first attack in 2012, until today, the Christians in Ras al-Ain keep refusing any external interventions to get them out of their country.