Rebels blasted through a government checkpoint Sept. 5 outside Maaloula, a town of about 2,000 people 35 miles northeast of Damascus. Maaloula is one of the oldest continually inhabited Christian villages in the world yet retains a vibrant connection to its past. In 2002 I spent a memorable morning there, listening to locals recite the Lord’s Prayer in Aramaic inside the stone-walled chancel of Mar Sarkis monastery.
The town sits in the cleft of a cliff beneath the Qalamoun Mountains, and rebel fighters first stormed a hotel atop the cliff at about 6 a.m. As shelling began to rain down, residents who could fled by car to Damascus. Dozens more took refuge in nearby churches, including a convent where nuns hid 27 orphans in their care inside a cave. The Syrian army sent in warplanes to bomb rebel posts, reportedly forcing them to abandon control of Maaloula after several days. ...
read more: http://www.worldmag.com/2013/09/who_stands_with_syrias_christians