but yes. the industry is controlling your thoughts the great books of the 20th century. the present day hoaxes. praising the world for manufacturing ignorance starts may 3rd. a growing number of christians from the middle east now live in germany how lose kurt has been here for decades he was born in southeastern turkey. but in recent years many have come from syria where christianity is fast disappearing does it it's not the 1st time this has happened in the middle east it might be that there are always wars and in the end if the christians lose the freedom to lose kurt is

seeking to help. he's come to syria to find out what he can do to alleviate the situation and to encourage the last remaining christians not to leave. while his journey succeed. his 1st destination a clinic in the town of sadhana in western syria he hasn't come empty handed this ambulance is as good as new one final check. take a e.c.g. monitor is there ever so i found that you. know that us to just get it in a few minutes paolo's card and heinz naff will hand over the vehicle. it was transported from germany by ship. the ambulance has been completely renewed thanks to 30000 euros in donations. vote. and here's worked on it for 2 years members of

a catholic association in germany also helped hines now is one of. a qualified paramedic he goes through the equipment on board with one of the doctors at the clinic. the hospital's own ambulance was destroyed by islamist militants. many of those who donated to the new vehicle were initially concerned about giving money to a country ruled by a dictator but in the end the desire to help in the face of human need prevailed you mention here people here have suffered a lot and had a lot stolen from them you can see the state of the previous. was shot to pieces while most were militants and court. important for us is to help. whether there's an autocratic governments in power or a free to elect. the ambulances ready to go staff at the clinic are delighted they say it will help save lives.

to move them it's very much needed because the next town spittle is 45 kilometers away and we have no specialist doctors here every time we need to transfer patient we need a vehicle but there just aren't any often you can't even order a private car the end violence will serve more than 15000 people not just here inside out but also the surrounding villages. the ambulance is the 1st major project for paulo skirts small aid organizations he knows what it is to flee fighting he was a refugee himself when he came to germany in 1980 this is a big moment for him. up when i see that bust up ambulance. and i can't put into words how happy and proud i am. people now have this samuel and this is. used to be home to many christians the scene

is quickly shared with other syrians back in germany high class the ambulance. oh was there an ax fall. in germany where. rania fled syria 4 years ago and now lives in germany she works for the aid organization which is why she was given special permission by the german immigration authorities to return here just for a few days. time for another quick photo for friends and donors back in germany. little bit i love the i said not yet and then. suddenly a man comes by on a moped the group knows him how you do you her newman was previously a refugee in germany to. how you know you well. know it was your shiny honeymoon and bites his old friends back to his house. because he fled syria

to escape the islamic state group rather than the assad regime he and his family faced no problems when they return and now he works as a self-employed car mechanic and. he and his wife and children are living here sharing with another family. they hope it's just a temporary solution. that rania wants to know if shanti and his family need any help the she can't understand why they returned voluntarily i think less often the what made you leave germany in come back here when. i came back because i wasn't doing well mentally. ill that i had no work and nothing to do i just spent 24 hours a day thinking about everything i for i need work to distract me and pass the time while i was in germany but my thoughts were here in

a sadar suburb my market is i'm not planning to return there's nothing here for me my son says mom i'm not going back i'm studying i'm working i don't want to lose my future my daughter is doing her high school diploma aren't you worried about your family and children if the ins return is how you guys mother thought no no it's completely safe here. will work here my mother there were bomb attacks yesterday for want of homes is completely safe syria is completely safe right through to iraq is the father would you go back if the militants returned. a lot to germany probably. running or asks his daughter lane if she wants to go to germany yes she does she tells us she loves going to school in germany lane shows us around the home and this is the living room she says. where. the this is the bedroom for the entire family. this is the end this is the kitchen

where they all cooked together. the honeymoon is not typical most christians aren't keen to return to syria. the assad dynasty has ruled the country since 1971 the personality cult surrounding the president is all too evident and so are the scars of war. there are roadblocks everywhere. journalists are not allowed to move freely in syria. at least one person from the information ministry escorted us whenever we felt for security reasons we were told. that the capital damascus is still a bustling center of life. all appears calm here and relatively normal. but

appearances can be deceiving. the old city which remains largely intact has numerous control posts and a host of security officials who we are not allowed to film. the fear of terrorist attacks is very real and there is also rampant inflation the war and international sanctions have driven prices through the roof the syrian pound is constantly losing value. even the man selling sweets deals with huge bundles of money. that's one of our sanctions the problem i ask her if yes they're driving up the prices says this trader. it's a crisis with no end in sight for syria's war weary population. not far from the market is the official residence of the head of the syriac orthodox church. paulose and members of his a group international society of oriental christians are here to talk to the

patriarch about new projects you know. the ambulance for saddam was just a start. they've waited weeks for this appointment with the patriarch. to. make not c.s.i. from the 2nd meet them in person. with. the patriarch is the spiritual leader of millions of syriac orthodox christians all over the world. he has no illusions about the future of christians in syria as he tells us in a rare interview. if i have to look at it as the christian situation in syria i would say that numbers have almost. been reduced by half unfortunately. those who are still here some of them are still looking forward to leaving syria. does in such situation

we believe that it's important for us to strengthen our presence and i would contribution to syria because of that. the decrease in numbers we have to double 0 if it's and to be stronger in our situations in order to. prove ourselves as citizens and also to be able to help the rest of the syrian brothers us is that really with what many centuries all over. at the cathedral of st george in damascus the psalms are sung in aramaic the language spoken by jesus christ the syriac orthodox the nomination sees itself in the tradition of the early church the 1st christians came to damascus 2000 years ago. the patriarch ignacio's africa has been in office since 2014.

even at the height of the syrian civil war he stayed mostly in damascus. he rejects criticism from the west that he and his church have sold out to the assad regime. we have been in contact with many politicians and church leaders in the west and i am sorry to say that they have failed to understand our situation they have followed the mainline politics of the west. they look at christians in particular as collaborators as people supporting this regime or that and this is that the case of course it hurts us to see people in the west accusing us of 1st standing on the side while we think they are on the wrong side of history so why does the patriarch

believe the west is on the wrong side of history on syria for more insight we need with. a german expert on eastern christianity he spent years living in the middle east and knows many of the church leaders personally. mark undersea in the fuselage at this patriarch is just taking care of his flock. and it's quite simply the case that all the christians in syria believe that the conditions they've experienced on the bashar al assad and his father before. good as it gets in a state like syria. into the best movie can and there's always the fear that if things change fundamentally and the situation for the christians could look very different that for example if radical islamists like the muslim brotherhood came to power. so preventing the top priority on those 2 for human is not the cure you which takes this to you. prefers to stay out of politics

he just wants to help his fellow christians and their time of need. when the people talk a lot but they don't actually do anything to help it as someone who has been through these things i see it as my duty and my calling to help and support people in a situation like this to help and. running as focus is elsewhere right now she's longing to see her parents again and is planning a visit her family lives quite a distance from damascus. i haven't seen them for 4 years. i feel like my heart has stopped beating. we had north to visit rania's parents. while some areas have been reduced to rubble others remain untouched protected by checkpoints. our destination is

an area known as the valley of christians in the province of homs where ronnie is mother and the entire family are waiting expectantly the war torn rania's family apart her parents village hasn't been destroyed but it was behind the front line meaning rania was cut off from her family. because the amount of the it's incredible to think she's on her way here. you know what i'm so happy. because . there's just nothing much sympathy i'm very happy about that any mother in my position would be happy to see her daughter again it's been 5 years since we've seen her that she had to flee we were very worried about her she left on her own and has been through a lot. for the past week they've been waiting impatiently for rania to reach them.

for years the only contact they've had with their daughter has been on the phone. and my darling oh. oh. oh we're so happy that she came back and you got the take you and your children.

if you will sleep i'm so happy to see my mother and father among my uncles and until my friend is talking to you i'm going i'm very happy. about your ma. only just got out of homs in time. she lived near here in the city of homs together with her husband and children along with many other christians she never wants to come back here again. this neighborhood can only be accessed with a special permit from syria's military intelligence service palms was a center of the uprising against assad. the city came under rebel control the christians suffered greatly and during the long government siege

to retake the city conditions were desperate. since 2017 the whole of homs has been back under government control. nature is gradually taking over. most residents were able to escape many now live in germany. but a few have returned and are now living in the ruins. it's mainly the older generation that have come back to their former neighborhood. and her husband she says homes was like hell on earth. out of it when i came back i didn't recognize our apartment every. thing was burned up destroyed or had collapsed so it makes me sad at 1st i fainted at the sight i was as white as a sheet looking at all this houses apartments everything gone they left nothing. to

look at. what my along. sue aren't witnessed terrible things but still she's hoping that her neighbors will return and things will be as they were before. there was a woman who just wanted to cross the street with her children they attacked them and shot them all dead they shot the woman her husband and the children what can i say seeing the bodies lying on the street was terrifying just awful about the bodies that. can she ever forgive the murderers. that none of them know i'm not forgiving them it's impossible that somehow that he forgave everything but what happened he wasn't normal at that we saw things with their own eyes that we could never have believed he has just not been there would have any birds even the birds fled from those gonna feel loose

a loving. god within. a few minutes drive away is the manzanar church an important syriac orthodox cathedral this site is said to have been a place of christian worship for 2000 years. the building was severely damaged in the fighting but has since been restored. the church is seen as an anchor by many oriental orthodox christians follow skirt included. this is my identity. throughout history we oriental orthodox christians have never had a state that represented us politically or practically it so the church was always

the highest authority that has always represented us and so it's my identity. that . very often it's the churches that have been rebuilt 1st in syria without a church many see no hope of returning. follows continues his journey to the column on mountains near the lebanese border. the road passes through terrain that has remained unchanged for centuries. eventually we reach a small mountain village. lula home to an ancient christian community. the war came here to. in september 2013 and are not militants of the al qaeda affiliated al nusra front

invaded the village days of fighting ensued between the militants and government troops. buildings and artifacts dating back to antiquity were badly damaged some were directly targeted by the militants. right now things in manila are quiet. hollows has a range to meet professor needs are zob or he's a well known artist who has studied the history of syria including this special place called. ok. he says that even during those terrible weeks back in 2013 there were courageous people who helped their neighbors. when the militants

and the muslim residents from the village of. helped the christians of mali. for some even hit the christians in their homes a few minutes of. this relatively peaceful coexistence between diverse cultural groups set syria apart before the war that is the 4th could you imagine syria without this diversity things different religion it's really the story if you don't plan which syria has 18 different religious denominations i'm definite groups. that mr adversity is one of his most outstanding characteristic. of international he looked around damascus and. other things how you expect them to be. now how do you. build that i thought i would only see images dealt with because. everything we saw in europe was dark and hopeless. but what i've noticed here now

is that there is hope. and hope. but i do see that some people are fearful and this an angst. and when i stand here i see the monastery on the one side that's been repaired. but on the other the hotel that still stands in ruins. this is why so there are 2 different pictures this is for me and it's not easy for me to imagine that all this will stop at some point. although i sincerely hope it will. be. but i would like europe to come and see where their own oil is how life here is and to newark despite everything despite the sanctions passed by cultivated europe with all respect come and see how life serious. looking at the destruction and the still relatively tense situation it's hard to

imagine that this was once a popular tourist destination. footage from a german broadcaster dating back to 2001 shows the hotel and village as it was a lively and beautiful place. visitors would come from all over the world to see them are sark it's one of syria's oldest surviving monasteries with its famous icons and ancient altar. the rule. of law is one of the last remaining villages where aramaic is still spoken the language of jesus christ this is the lord's prayer in aramaic i wanna. get the sh'ma he shared him all can i just can you know. it's me wish morse had a lot of. the holy oman hopefully that was 20 years ago

what happened to the young woman did she survive the war. after months of research we find she's still here when the islamist militants came she hid in a cave now she's happy to show us around the monastery and church. of them with the missy this is one of the oldest altars in christian. what the one about had just broken that you can still see the cracks but i stuck it back together. when we came back after madeleine was liberated we found it in 3 or 4 pieces that at about. order has been restored in the church and the dome rebuilt. who. i.

really. no walk oh oh. oh. well home. all living. just. another sizable christian community is located in northern syria right near the turkish border. this footage was filmed in july 29th teen before turkey invaded the area. it's a predominantly kurdish region the kurds have long strived for political autonomy

and traditionally oppose the assad regime. the footage shows many images of. the jailed founder of the kurdistan workers' party or p k k both turkey and the west see the p.k. k. as a terrorist group the turkish government views the local kurdish administration and all kurdish fighters as terrorists. in october 21000 turkish troops and allied militias invaded northern syria among them turkish back to jihad ists. in the chaos there were many reports of islamic state militants escaping from kurdish jails. the local christians found themselves with nowhere to turn. caught up in the fighting targeted by the islamists but not natural allies of the kurds either i escape route

to europe via turkey was blocked by the walled off border. muslims or from peeps i got there's no hope of escaping from this area of the houses and beats the whole of turkey has been closed for a number of years it's a cosmetic he sealed and so the christians are forced to stay where they are because it gets warm and lots of blood was recent. but what will the christians do if the situation in northern syria escalates. it's woman's if they're forced to flee with an open city they will somebody else will be and sadly that could happen in the next few years. i.

treasure in the desert. the margins in natural gas fields. and oil the sources of turkmenistan smiled but archaeologists have discovered even more in the desert traces of saddam and us 1000 year old son john carter turkmenistan's ancient here in tastes in 15 minutes on d w. blinds us is on its way to bring you more conservation. how do we make city screeners how can we protect. to have a chance to make a difference good morning to those who are meant to ceres again google sometimes and do you believe that all mine.

played. this is stay there be any is live from the land india is hits by a 2nd wave off the carload of virus as new cases soar to almost 100000 for a sink 2nd day running status for not prime minister narendra modi to open up vaccinations to more of the population also coming up to. a whole full.