In this article published by James Perloff he interviews an American immigrant from Syria. She also happens to be Christian.

The War in Syria is – as usual – not what it appears to be. The Middle East is a much more complex place than most Americans have any idea, with many moving parts, and many not-so-secret alliances.

I have included some highlights of the interview below.

A Syrian Christian Reveals What is Really Happening in Syria | James Perloff

Intro by Perloff: I originally anticipated that our discussion would be two-part; first I would give her a short primer on the back story of American politics. When we sat down, I told H that I have been a journalist since 1985. I began to explain that America is run by an oligarchy that conceals itself behind a façade of two-party democracy, that Presidential candidates have long been pre-selected, that Americans have been repeatedly deceived into wars, and that our press is controlled by the same establishment that controls the politicians. H was smiling, and I could swiftly tell that nothing I said was news to her. And so it was affirmed that what famed commentator “Syrian Girl” (whose Facebook and YouTube accounts have been censored) said is true: Syrians are well informed about the New World Order. Indeed, Syrians know more about the realities of American geopolitics than most Americans do. So, after about four minutes, I laughed, and told H that my “lecture” was over. I now asked her to tell me the truth about Syria…

JP: First of all, tell me about Bashar al-Assad. The American media and many politicians here portray him as an evil dictator who is oppressing the people of Syria, and who must be overthrown in one of our never-ending “regime changes.” How do the people of Syria themselves feel about Assad? Especially, I’d like you to tell my readers how Syria’s Christians regard him.

H: They love him. The Christians adore him. He respects all religions. Many Americans have the misconception that Syria is a Muslim state. It is not. It is a secular state, although the Christians are in the minority.

Bashar was not supposed to become President, you know. His brother was being groomed for that position. Bashar was trained to be an eye doctor, an ophthalmologist. But after his brother died, his father asked him to prepare to take the leadership.

Bashar brought great prosperity to Syria. Years ago, after the U.S. placed sanctions on us, we were forced to make our own goods. It was hard, but we became self-sufficient and began exporting many products. You know, Syria had no debt before the war. So we find it humorous when the American press calls us a “Third World country,” considering how much debt the U.S. has.

As to Assad, he is loved by Syrians. He used to go out unprotected among the people, no bodyguards. You know, he is an Alawite [Alawites are branch of Shiite Islam], and most of Syria’s Muslims are Sunnis, but they love him anyway. Of course, some of them would prefer to have a Sunni President, and there are people opposed to him. But there is not one president who is well liked by all his people; look at Obama, or Trump, no one has a 100 percent approval, but the majority of Syrians love Bashar. I personally know people who went to school with him, and they all vouch for his character.

JP: In the Syrian army, are the Christians comfortable fighting alongside Muslims?

H: Yes. They are fighting the same enemy. Many Christians have died in the Syrian army. I’m going to find you some pictures of Christian soldiers praying at church before going into battle.

JP: Now as to the so-called “rebels” whom the U.S. is backing, how many are actually Syrians?

H: 80 to 90 percent are foreigners—most don’t even speak Arabic [the native language of Syria]. They come from all over the world—Afghanis, Saudis, Libyans, Chechens, even from as far as Canada. They are trained in Turkey and Jordan.

JP: To me, it is insanity that we have Trump supporters here in America, who are professing Christians, but who cheer his “Assad must go” policy, which is identical to the Neocon “Assad must go” policy of Obama, John McCain and Hillary Clinton. As you know, after he launched the 59 cruise missiles against Shayrat Air Base, I wrote an article called 14 Reasons Why the Syria Airstrikes Were a Really Bad Idea. As just one example, you cannot dismantle chemical weapons by bombing them; this would only release them into the atmosphere, harming people. This was positive proof that the Trump administration knew Assad had not dropped chemical weapons on his own people.

H: And what would Assad’s motive be, right after winning a huge military victory? [Allepo] Whenever the media starts talking about chemical weapons, it means one thing: the Syrian army has had a major success. Like the one we just had in Ghouta, which we desperately needed, because if Ghouta fell, Damascus could fall, and that would be the end of Syria. America wants to curtail the advancement of the Syrian army, so they create an excuse to bomb the army whom we desperately need to protect us.

JP: Next I want to ask you how Syrians feel about the Russians.

H: If it weren’t for Russia’s intervention, Syria would have fallen a long time ago. Russians are good people in the opinion of Syrians. They never betrayed us. You know, when I was growing up in Syria, we lived very close to their government offices. I used to see them at the swimming pool. I was very comfortable among them, they were nice people who minded their own business.

Syrians trust Russia to keep its word, but they don’t trust the U.S. Everyone in Syria, and in the entire Middle East, knows that America can be your friend one day, then stab you in the back the next, because they betrayed Arabic countries so many times.

JP: Well, we have plenty of examples of that—as I’m sure you know, at one time we were arming Saddam Hussein, and before him the Taliban.

H: Yes. By the way, there was a time when Syrians really liked and respected America. But that has changed over the last twenty years.