Christians worldwide call for release of Syrian Christian mayor

Religious freedom advocates around the world are calling for the release of Suleiman Khalil, the former mayor of a Christian town in Syria, who has been held without charge for more than a year.

Khalil, 52, was arrested at his home in Sadad town on Feb. 8, 2025. Christian Solidarity International said on its website that many view Khalil’s arrest as retaliation for defending Sadad against fighters linked to the new government of Ahmed al-Sharaa, who took power following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s rule in January 2025.

The group said Syrian Christians have faced increased attacks, arrests, extortion and abductions in the 20 months since al-Sharaa took power, and it is collecting signatures online for his release.

CSI is running a campaign for Khalil’s release and has a link to its website where supporters can send a message to Syria’s foreign minister on his behalf.

A coalition of advocates sent an open letter, dated June 29, asking the U.S. State Department to press for his immediate release, according to Decision magazine.

The letter was addressed to Thomas Barrack, who serves as Washington’s ambassador to Turkey and its special envoy for Syria and Iraq. Signers include former U.S. Senator Sam Brownback, who later served as the U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, along with CSI President John Eibner and In Defense of Christians Executive Director Richard Ghazal, among others.

International Christian Concern reported that the letter was co-signed by the International Religious Freedom Summit, the Institute for Global Engagement, the Shai Fund, the American Syriac Union, and the Alawite Association of the United States.

Khalil served as mayor of Sadad from 2012 to 2016. Jihadist groups attacked the town twice during his tenure, first in October 2013, when a force led by the al-Qaida-linked group Jabhat al-Nusra occupied the town for a week and killed 41 Christian civilians, according to SyriacPress. Jabhat al-Nusra was founded by Ahmed al-Sharaa, now Syria's president, according to The Jerusalem Post.

Khalil organized the defense of Sadad against an al-Qaida assault in 2013 and an Islamic State (ISIS) attack in 2015, preventing the killing and kidnapping of residents that took place in the nearby Christian town of al-Qaryatayn.