Father Frans van der Lugt was yesterday murdered in cold blood in the rebel-held area of Homs, Syria. When the UN brokered ceasefire began in February this year Father Frans van der Lugt refused to be evacuated. He wanted to remain with the 23 Christians who were the last of a community which used to consist of 60,000. Father van der Lugt spent nearly five decades in Syria and considered the country to be his home. "The Syrian people have given me so much, so much kindness, inspiration and everything they have. If the Syrian people are suffering now, I want to share their pain and their difficulties," he told AFP in February. Furthermore he did not want the Christian heritage to disappear from Homs. Some Christians had to remain behind to project this heritage he believed.