Burning of a Christmas tree in Syria sets off protests

BEIRUT — Hundreds of people protested in Christian neighborhoods of the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Tuesday after the burning of a Christmas tree, chanting against sectarian strife as they marched through the streets carrying wooden crosses.

The protests, which appeared to be relatively small and confined largely to Damascus, broke out after footage began to circulate online Monday showing flames at the base of an artificial Christmas tree in the mostly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah, near the central city of Hama.

In the footage, which was verified by The New York Times, masked men are seen standing around the tree. It was unclear why the tree was burned, and who was behind it.

The overthrow of longtime Syrian dictator Bashar Assad this month by an Islam-affiliated rebel group has led to some fears of persecution among the country’s many minority communities, including Christians, Druze and Alawites.

But the newly empowered rebels have repeatedly sought to reassure minority groups that they will be protected.

Syria’s new government did not immediately make any public statements about the tree burning or the protests.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor that has long tracked the country’s conflict, blamed foreign fighters for the Christmas tree burning and said they had been arrested.

Thousands of foreign fighters have poured into Syria during the country’s 13-year civil war, which drew in many outside powers. Many of them joined rebel groups opposed to the Assad dictatorship.

The monitor had reported other attacks in recent days against Syrian minority groups, including gunfire at a Greek Orthodox Church in Hama.

The group said shrines belonging to the Alawite sect have also been attacked. Members of the Assad family are Alawites, and those in the sect were historically favored under their rule.