Syrian Bishop Paul Yazigi Was Not Recently Found in Assad’s Prisons
The Claim
Assad claimed that the Christian priest Paul Yazigi was snatched by rebels, but the truth is far less flattering. He was found in a poor state within Assad's torture prisons before being freed.
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Following the Syrian regime's collapse, social media users widely circulated a photo purporting to feature the missing Bishop Paul Yazigi after being found in one of Bashar al-Assad’s notorious prisons recently.
An X user shared the photo, along with the caption, “Assad claimed that the Christian priest Paul Yazigi was snatched by rebels, but the truth is far less flattering. He was found in a poor state within Assad's torture prisons before being freed.”
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the viral photo and found the claim to be misleading.
A thorough reverse image search found the photo making the rounds to be unrelated to the missing Bishop Paul Yazigi.
The Photo Does Not Show Paul Yazigi After His Release from Assad’s Prisons
Contrary to social media users’ claim, the old man displayed in the viral photo is a Lebanese patient receiving treatment in Syrian hospitals.
Misbar’s team found a video shared on Instagram by Daily Arabi, where an MTV reporter claimed that the elderly man in the video had recently been released from Saydnaya prison.
However, the MTV reporter discovered that the old man traveled from Lebanon to Syria for medical care. He was neither a detainee nor connected to the missing Bishop Paul Yazigi.
In addition, during the interview, the patient’s relatives presented his identification card to confirm that he is a Lebanese patient receiving treatment in Syria. His name is “Mohammad Qabani,” born in 1947.
Furthermore, Misbar’s investigative team searched online to verify the claim of finding Paul Yazigi in Assad’s prisons after the opposition freed the prisoners.
On December 12, 2024, the official Facebook account of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East issued a statement refuting the claim, stating, “The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East states that what is being circulated is false and that the person referred to is not Bishop Boulos Yazigi.”
The statement further affirmed, “The Church of Antioch prays, works, and places this file as its major concern, asking God from the bottom of the hearts of its children for the two kidnapped bishops Boulos Yazigi and Youhanna Ibrahim, whose case epitomizes that of every kidnapped and distressed person.”
Who Is Bishop Paul Yazigi?
Metropolitan Paul Yazigi holds a religious status in Syria and the global Christian community due to his pivotal role in promoting interfaith dialogue and serving youth and society.
As Metropolitan of Aleppo, he actively advocated for peaceful coexistence among various sects.
Following the outbreak of the Syrian crisis, he intensified humanitarian efforts to aid those affected by the conflict.
On April 22, 2013, an unidentified armed group abducted Yazigi and Bishop Youhanna Ibrahim during a humanitarian mission in Aleppo Governorate.
The Syrian government reported that an “armed terrorist group” kidnapped both bishops while they were conducting humanitarian work in Kafr Dael, Syria.
The Syrian National Coalition confirmed their abduction along the road to Aleppo from the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey, an area under opposition control at the time.
The abduction contributed to a rise in Christian migration from Syria, as many felt increasingly unsafe. The United Nations called on both the Syrian government and armed groups to disclose the whereabouts of the two bishops, but their fate remains unknown.
The Syrian Opposition Topples the Regime and Ousts Assad
Syrian opposition forces recently announced the end of President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year rule.
Bashar al-Assad, whose family ruled Syria for over 50 years, fled the capital and was granted “humanitarian asylum” in Moscow.
In the aftermath of al-Assad’s regime collapse, Turkey's interior minister said that more than 7,600 Syrian refugees crossed the Turkish border to return home within five days.
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