(RAS BAALBECK, LEBANON) — The threat of Islamic State has crossed the borders of Syria to neighboring Lebanon, making Christians there arm themselves to defend their land and families from the extremists. International Russian cable channel “Russia Today” goes to the Syrian-Lebanese border, to meet the militants.
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“With the Syrian war next door, we have many troubles, many suspicious people come here, we have to be on high alert. We have to defend our land from terrorists, from ISIS and Nusra Front [al-Qaeda branch operating in the area,” Abu Tony, a militia member of the town of Qaa in north-western Lebanon told RT.
Christians maintain considerable power in Lebanon, with estimates suggesting the number is roughly equal to Muslims. The exact percent of Christian believers has been disputed for decades, with the last official census conducted in the country in 1932, but studies show there might be up to 40 percent currently living in Lebanon.
According to a report, published at the start of the year by a group monitoring persecution of Christians worldwide, at least 2,100 Christians died because of their beliefs in 2013. Most of the dead were in Syria, where radical Islamist groups have clamped down on a long-established religious minority.
Source: Russia Today (RT)