On October 17, 1850, an angry crowd of Muslims protesting the looming threat of conscription advanced on the Christian quarters of Aleppo - Judayde and Salibeh - and began to loot and pillage churches and homes.
They massacred both Rûm (Levantine-Greeks) and Syriacs.
In the aftermath, 20 Christians lay dead, along with 688 homes, 36 shops, and six churches damaged, including the Rûm Catholic Patriarchate and its library.
Due to the fear of another outbreak of violence, hundreds of Christians emigrated from Aleppo, primarily to Beirut and Smyrna.
Today, we honor the memory of the innocent victims of this horrific attack on the city's Rûm and Syriac communities.