Frans van der Lugt was killed this morning, April 7, 2014, in the city of Homs, which is occupied by rebel forces and under siege by government forces. The priest was 75 years old and had lived in Syria for 50 years.
The Jesuit Curia for the provinces of the Middle East and North Africa reported in a statement that the priest "had been abducted by armed men who beat him and then executed him with two shots to the head".
This place had become a refuge for many whose homes had been destroyed by incessant shelling and bombing during the two-year siege. It was a place where they could get some of the food and water still available in the city.
In February, AsiaNews relayed an appeal from the priest on behalf of the people of Homs, who were suffering from hunger and fear due to bombing, shelling, insecurity and lack of medicine.
The siege and incessant shelling of the city had reduced the Christian community from 60,000 to just 66, the Dutch priest said.
Frans van der Lugt never tried to leave Homs. In an interview a few months ago he said: "The Syrian people have given me so much, so much kindness, inspiration and everything they have. If the Syrian people are suffering now, I want to share their pain and their difficulties."
The reasons for the attack are unclear. Some sources have told AsiaNews that the priest was involved in mediating between the rebels and the army to save the people of Homs.
The priest came to Syria in 1966 after studying Arabic for two years in Lebanon. Frans van der Lugt stayed in Homs even after 1,400 people were able to leave the city due to a UN-brokered ceasefire where food and water were brought in.
A few days before the ceasefire, the priest had published a video describing the dramatic situation people in Homs were in.
In the video, he could be heard saying: "We, Christians and Muslims, live in difficult and painful conditions; we suffer especially from hunger. We love life and we don't want to die or drown in a sea of death and suffering."
A yellow sign next to him read: "Starving is more painful than dying from chemical weapons."
Source: AsiaNews
