SPOTLIGHT 23/12/03 Papal charity in Korea raises funds for Christians in war zones

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Papal charity in Korea raises funds for Christians in war zones

The Korean branch of Aid to the Church in Need is running a campaign to help Christians in Syria, Israel and other countries

A woman attends a Mass in the Syrian village of Sadad in this file image. (Photo: Youssef Karwashan/AFP)

By UCA News reporter

Published: December 18, 2023 11:22 AM GMT

The Korean branch of papal charity Aid to Church in Need (ACN) has launched a Christmas fundraiser campaign to help Christians suffering in war-torn Syria and the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The ACN Korea “2023 Advent and Christmas Campaign” runs from Dec. 3, 2023, to Jan. 12, 2024.

The funds will be channeled to Christians in Syria, Christian migrant workers in Israel and other asylum seekers in other countries, the charity said.

A major portion will be delivered to support “A Bite of Love Project,” running from Dec. 2023 to Dec. 2024 operated by the Family House soup kitchen at St. Joseph's Cathedral in Damascus, Syria.

The project provides food to Syrian Christians and others who suffer from hyperinflation in the country.

Civil war erupted in Syria after President Bashar al-Assad's government crushed peaceful protests calling for government reforms in 2011.

The conflict has killed more than half a million people and driven half the country's pre-war population from their homes, AFP reported.

Christians in Syria numbered around two million people during the pre-civil war period, according to the European Union Agency for Asylum.

The number dropped down to 450,000, with many of them migrating to Europe and the United States, the agency said.

The ACN Korean also supports the “One Smile” project which sends clothes to Syrian children as Christmas gifts.

Poverty-stricken children in Syria were set to receive 27,590 warm coats where the soaring levels of inflation have made it difficult for parents to buy their kids traditional anoraks during the winters that hit sub-zero temperatures.

In January 2023, Syria reported its year-on-year annual inflation rate of roughly 89.7 percent for consumer prices, the Syrian Center for Policy Research reported.

On behalf of the Holy Land Israel-Palestine Emergency Support Project, the papal charity sponsored the first set of food coupons to households in Bethlehem, Ramallah, and East Jerusalem.

The coupons worth 175 and 250 euros could be used to purchase daily food and necessities.

Food, water, and medicines were provided at the Holy Family Catholic Church and the Saint Porphyrios Greek Orthodox Church in the Gaza Strip, where most of the 1,000 Christians in the region have taken refuge.

The foundation also provides medical aid and food to the Christian community in East Jerusalem in collaboration with the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

The Christian immigrants living in Israel get support such as accommodation and medical care.

* This report is brought to you in partnership with the Catholic Times of Korea