The Institute for Global Engagement (IGE) took part in an interfaith delegation to Syria from June 11–19, 2026, traveling to Damascus, Homs, and Aleppo to meet with senior government officials and leaders of the country’s historic religious communities. Organized by MedGlobal’s Humanitarian Faith Initiative, the visit brought together Christian, Muslim, and Jewish faith leaders from the United States to listen to Syrians across the religious and political spectrum at a pivotal moment in the nation’s transition.

The June trip was IGE’s third visit to Syria since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024. IGE first traveled to the country in January 2025 and returned in August 2025 to help convene an unprecedented gathering of representatives from 37 religious and ethnic communities, devoted to easing sectarian tensions and building trust. That gathering’s opening session was joined by a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation led by Senator Jeanne Shaheen, with Representative Joe Wilson and Ambassador Tom Barrack.

In and around Damascus, the delegation was received by senior figures in Syria’s transitional government. Members met with Hind Kabawat, the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor; Dr. Mohammad Abu al-Khair Shukri, the Minister of Religious Endowments; and Saad Baroud, who directs the American Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the surrounding governorate of Rural Damascus (Rif Dimashq), the delegation sat down with Governor Amer al-Sheikh and Brigadier General Ahmed al-Dalati, the governorate’s head of internal security, for a wide-ranging conversation on security, reconstruction, and the protection of Syria’s diverse communities.

The delegation also spent time with leaders of Syria’s ancient churches and other faith communities. In Damascus, it was welcomed by Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and by Bishop Romanos Al-Hannat, Patriarchal Vicar of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch, who received the delegation on behalf of Patriarch John X. Traveling north, the group was hosted in Homs by Archbishop Mor Timotheos Matta al-Khoury, the Syriac Orthodox Archbishop of Homs, Hama, and Tartus, at the historic Church of Umm al-Zennar, and in Aleppo by Bishop Hanna Jallouf, the Apostolic Vicar of Aleppo for the Latin (Roman Catholic) Church. Along the way, the delegation also met prominent Sunni Muslim leaders in Damascus and Aleppo and members of Syria’s small remaining Jewish community.

Across these meetings, the delegation heard a consistent set of themes. Government and religious leaders alike emphasized a vision of Syria built on equal citizenship for all of its ethnic and religious communities, rather than a framework of protected “minorities.” Many described a marked improvement in religious freedom since the transition, even as minority communities also voiced continuing concern about safety and accountability following episodes of sectarian violence in 2025. Interlocutors underscored the importance of reconciliation and transitional justice, the return of Syria’s diaspora, and economic recovery, and repeatedly expressed openness to partnership with the United States and the broader faith community.

“In a single week, we heard the same hope expressed by government ministers, patriarchs, and imams alike — that Syria’s future be built on equal citizenship, where people of every faith and background belong fully and equally.” said IGE President Bob Roberts.

Building on the visit, IGE will continue to engage Syrian government leaders as they undertake the revision of Syria’s constitution and laws to protect religious freedom and ensure equal citizenship for all of Syria’s ethnic and religious communities.