(ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, FEBRUARY 24 - Around thirty armed men
with their faces covered, except their leader, have threatened
and mistreated nuns, monks, clerics and pastors in the Monastery
of Mar Musa, north of Damascus. The monastery has been led for
years by the Italian Jesuit monk Father Paolo Dall'Oglio. The
news was reported to ANSA by Father Paolo, who explained that
the accident took place on Wednesday.
A statement sent to ANSA from Beirut by Father Paolo, who is
now in Mar Musa but was in Damascus when the incident took
place, specifies that ''around thirty armed men entered the
monastery's stables where some people were working. They caused
a total chaos, looking for money and weapons and asked for the
person in charge.''
The monks of Mar Musa are not certain about the identity of
the armed group: ''They appeared to be men who regularly use
weapons to gain material interest. One of the pastors was forced
to lead part of the group to another wing of the monastery,
where four nuns were making preparations for prayer. Immediately
after, some of the attackers went to the church. The monastic
community, united for meditation, reminded them that the church
is a holy place that deserves respect. The armed men then forced
those present, making threats against them, to gather in a
corner of the church. They also seized other people in the
monastery, treating them brutally.''
''After that,'' the statement continues, ''they started to
look for arms and money, not finding any, destroying the
communication devices they found. The leader of the group took
pictures with his mobile phone. After that, he allowed the
prayer to be resumed and ordered all present to stay in the
church for an hour. The question remains why they were looking
for weapons in a monastery that made the choice for non-violence
many years ago.'' (ANSAmed).
