A tremor measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale in the middle of the night: death and destruction in Turkey and Syria. This is also how the Franciscans of the Custody of the Holy Land in Syria woke up. The Latin parish in Aleppo suffered some damage, the church bell tower lost some stones but Franciscans immediately took action to offer solidarity to those fleeing in the rain and cold, some still in their pajamas. Br BAHJAT KARAKACH, ofm Latin pastor in Aleppo "We went down. A lot of people fled from their homes, fled in the dark because there is no electricity. We here welcomed people in the church until the morning; we celebrated Mass and opened the hall to welcome people and feed them." The parish kitchen, which already serves about 1,200 meals a day to the poorest people, will do its utmost to help all those left homeless. GIACOMO PIZZI Pro Terra Sancta Association "We are organizing in the canteen we already run in Aleppo 500 more meals at the request of the municipality." Association Pro Terra Sancta, which supports many realities of the Custody, will launch a fundraiser soon: GIACOMO PIZZI Pro Terra Sancta Association "There will be a need for all the help we can get...there will be a need for blankets, because as you see it's raining and it's very cold, there is no heating or light. There is a need for blankets, food, water." Br BAHJAT KARAKACH, OFM Latin priest of Aleppo "We ask for your support, your help, and above all, we launch an appeal to lift the sanctions from Syria so that it can be rebuilt, so that we can help those in need." Read More