The Christian community of Idlib, a province in Northwestern Syria near the Turkish border, is among the most vulnerable in all of the country. Idlib, the last stronghold of the anti-Assad rebels, has welcomed over 3 million refugees from other provinces seeking shelter from the ongoing violence. However, the Syrian army launched a major offensive to take Idleb in December 2019, leading to heavy casualties on both sides and to depriving more than 1 million civilians of shelter, medicine and food.
Among those stuck in the inferno of the offensive is Michel Khoury, a Syrian Christian along with his wife and two daughters. Michel was a farmer from the nearby Suwayda province, and despite being kidnapped and ransomed twice, he chose to remain in his hometown and take care of this family and farm. However, in 2013 after receiving many threats and after the situation in Suwayda deteriorated, Michel and his family decided to leave their ancestral hometown and head towards a village called Latanya in northern Syria. Michel managed to find a job working the land, however he was barely able to supply his family with food and basic needs.
Unfortunately for the Khourys, violent battles broke out again in Latanya and the nearby areas, forcing the family to remain indoors for a long time. Unable to leave their home, Michel and his family became more desperate, and had no other options but to remain hidden indoors.
Eventually, the Khourys’ prayers were finally answered when The Nazarene Fund learned about them. Teams on the ground set a plan to extract the family which was safely moved out of the conflict zone and into Iraq. The Nazarene Fund is currently taking care of the Khoury’s, providing them a home and tending to their needs.