.
Travels abroad Shortly after his election, Ignatius Aphrem II paid an official visit to the
Holy See of Cilicia in
Antelias, Lebanon to participate in a meeting to discuss higher levels of collaboration between the Syriac Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic Churches, as well as other
Oriental Orthodox churches. In May 2015, Aphrem II was received by
Carl XVI Gustaf and
Queen Silvia of Sweden as he visited the country's Syriac Orthodox parishes. Since his enthronement, he has made apostolic visits to
Iraq and
Syria to assist Christians displaced by the advance of
ISIS and the general turmoil caused by the
Syrian civil war. The patriarch also visited displaced Christians and refugee camps in
Shaqlawa, where Patriarchal Liturgy was served along with special prayers. In 2022, Patriarch Aphrem II was received by the
Vatican during a meeting with the
International Catholic Legislators Network. Around the
fall of the Assad regime, Aphrem II was in
Kerala, India for a 10-day visit, but it was cut short due to the military situation and political crises. Aphrem II has also made several apostolic visits abroad since his enthronement as the Patriarch including in
India,
Switzerland,
Austria,
Netherlands and
Germany. In August 2025, he began a pastoral trip across the Tur Abdin region that lasted a week long, During the visit, Aphrem II remarked the great amount of progress made in the region, and his presence greatly boosted the morale of
Assyrians in Turkey. He also got to meet with Zafer Sırakaya in an extended meeting with other bishops. In 2025, Patriarch Aphrem II visited Syriac Orthodox churches in Canada as part of his second apostolic visit to Canada.
Suicide attack On Sunday 19 June 2016, an
ISIS-affiliated
suicide bomber attempted to
assassinate Aphrem II during a special ceremony commemorating the 101st anniversary of the
Sayfo. The attacker was disguised as a priest and had detonated a
bomb shortly after being stopped by security guards. Three security officers were killed and five people injured, including members of the Assyrian
Sutoro; however, Aphrem II himself was unharmed.
Support for Syria Speaking for a public television interview in
New Jersey in 2013, Metropolitan Cyril Aphrem Karim opposed the possibility of
United States airstrikes against Syria, citing his religious morals as well as the previous suffering of
Syrians due to the events of the
Syrian civil war. In 2016, Aphrem II claimed "Russia has given hope to the people of Syria," in support of the
Russian military intervention in Syria during the
Syrian Civil War. In April 2018, Ignatius Aphrem II, together with
Greek Orthodox patriarch,
John X of Antioch, and
Youssef Absi of the
Melkite Greek Catholic Church, issued a strong condemnation of the
2018 missile strikes against Syria. In their statement, they wrote that the bombings "were clear violations of the international laws and the
UN Charter", and that the "unjust aggression encourages the terrorist organizations and gives them momentum to continue in their terrorism." The churches called on the
United Nations Security Council and other
churches in Syria to condemn the aggression, and saluted the
Syrian Arab Armed Forces for protecting the country. Aphrem II has previously been vocal about lifting the
international sanctions against Syria, including a New Year's address around 2022 in
Austria. In the wake of the
2025 massacres of Syrian Alawites, Aphrem II issued a statement alongside John X and Youssef Absi condemning the violence. In the statement, they wrote of the "dangerous escalation of violence, brutality, and killings, resulting in attacks on innocent civilians, including women and children" and called for a relaxation of conditions to further the stable transition of the country. ==Styles==