Hungarian bishop delivers aid to Syrian Christians

Budapest, May 14 (MTI) – Internally displaced people staying in Syria face great humanitarian challenges, László Kiss-Rigó, the Catholic bishop of Hungary’s Szeged-Csanád diocese, said after returning from a trip to Syria where he distributed aid to Christians.

A lack of hospitals and doctors is a big problem for the millions who do not want to leave their homeland, Kiss-Rigó told MTI in an interview on Saturday. The bishop said he was able to collect 11 million forints (EUR 35,000) in donations from his diocese in two weeks to help the humanitarian efforts of a Maronite Christian community in the region near the town of Kharab Maqiyya.

Kiss-Rigó said he had held talks with Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, the Grand Mufti of Syria, Ephraim Malouli, the vicar of the Orthodox Christian Church, Samuel Rizk, the Country Director for Syria at the UNDP, and Archbishop Mario Zenari, the Apostolic Nuncio to Syria, on the conflicts and the humanitarian needs of the region.

Kiss-Rigó said his diocese has long been awarding scholarships to students from developing countries to study at the University of Szeged’s department of medicine and will continue to offer these scholarships, perhaps in greater numbers, so that graduates can return to their homeland and help the population.

Photo: MTI

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters