Syrian Christians attended Christmas Eve services on Tuesday for the first time since the overthrow of President Bashar Assad in early December, in an early test of the new Islamist rulers' pledges to protect the rights of the country's religious minorities.
The service was held amid tight security due to concerns of violence against Christian sites, with several pickup cars belonging to the now ruling Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) parked around the church.
The pews of Lady of Damascus Church in Syria's capital filled with a mixed congregation of young and old, holding candles as hymns filled the air and echoed through the church.
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