Souhail Lawand

Souhail Lawand

Souhail Lawand is a writer at ACI MENA, a researcher in Roman and Christian history, an educator, and a scout leader.

Articles by Souhail Lawand

Members of security forces loyal to the interim Syrian government hold up their firearms as they stand by the Mediterranean sea coast in Syria’s western city of Latakia on March 9, 2025. Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, called for national unity and peace on March 9 amid growing international backlash following the killing of civilians along the country’s coast in the worst violence since the overthrow of former president Bashar al-Assad in the heartland of the Alawite minority, to which the latter belongs. Credit: OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Syrian patriarchs condemn massacres as sectarian violence escalates on Syria’s coast

Mar 11, 2025 / 11:30 am

In a joint statement issued March 8, the patriarchs of Syria condemned acts that threaten civil peace and denounced the “massacres targeting innocent civilians.”

Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti presides over the Divine Liturgy at the Church of St. Paul’s Shrine in Tabbaleh, Damascus, on Jan. 25, 2025. Credit: ACI MENA

Vatican’s first envoy to postwar Syria sees a nation with ‘a desire for life’

Jan 29, 2025 / 12:15 pm

The occasion marked the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.

The Syrian town of Maaloula. Credit: Valery Shanin/Shutterstock

Safety concerns escalate for Christians in historic Syrian town

Dec 31, 2024 / 14:30 pm

Christians in Maaloula in western Syria have been living with an intensifying fear for their safety, exacerbated by a recent incident.

On Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, the Franciscan complex of the Terra Santa College in Aleppo was hit by a strike. No casualties were reported but panic has reportedly spread among the people. Credit: Custody of the Holy Land

Franciscan monastery in Aleppo attacked; friars call for peace

Dec 3, 2024 / 15:05 pm

A statement released by the Franciscan order said a missile strike from a warplane hit the monastery, destroying one of its wings and setting its storage facility ablaze.

A large crowd gathered for the ceremony welcoming Patriarch Gregory Peter XV Agagianian's remains to Beirut's Martyrs' Square on Thursday, Sept 12, 2024. Credit: Romy Haber/ACI Mena

Body of Armenian patriarch on path to possible sainthood returns to Lebanon

Sep 15, 2024 / 07:00 am

The Armenian Catholic Patriarchate on Sept. 12 held a ceremony in Beirut’s Martyrs’ Square to welcome the remains of Patriarch Gregory Peter XV Agagianian.

The preparation of the crane at the Tower of Our Lady of the East to install the statue of the Virgin Mary on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2024. Credit: Moussa Hanna Photography

Between earth and sky: ‘Lady of the East’ statue rises in Syria

Aug 1, 2024 / 15:46 pm

A new landmark honoring the Virgin Mary will be inaugurated in a grand celebration Aug. 1–4 in the town of Al-Hwash, near Homs, Syria.