FACT CHECK: Ben Shapiro Didn’t Say That Syrian Christians Potential Slaughter Was A ‘Good Thing’

A post shared on X claims that conservative commentator Ben Shapiro said it was a “good thing” that Syrian Christians could be slaughtered because Israel’s enemies had weakened.

Jewish pundit Ben Shapiro acknowledges Syria’s Christian minority could be slaughtered now that Assad has been deposed, but says it’s a “good thing” because Israel’s enemies in the region have been weakened.

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Verdict: False

Shapiro said that it would be a “terrible thing.”

Fact Check:

The regime of long-time Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad was overthrown, with power being handed over to the Salvation Government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), according to Reuters.

Social media users are claiming that Shapiro said it would be a “good thing” if Syria’s Christian minority “could be slaughtered.”

“Jewish pundit Ben Shapiro acknowledges Syria’s Christian minority could be slaughtered now that Assad has been deposed, but says it’s a ‘good thing’ because Israel’s enemies in the region have been weakened,” one user wrote.

This claim is false. The video shows Shapiro saying that it could be a “terrible thing” for the Syrian Christians with the new government in charge.

“There were significant human right predations against Christians…not just in the areas controlled by Sunni terrorists, but also in areas controlled by Shia terrorists. Syria is about 10% Christian. Is it about to get worse? It definitely could, which would be a terrible thing,” Shapiro says.

Shapiro further says the overthrow of the Assad regime would be a “net net it would probably be a good thing” but said there was a “lot of bad people in the area…”

He also talks about Joulani, the leader of HTS, engaged in human rights abuses against Christians. There is nowhere in the video where he says that the potential killing of Syrian Christians was a “good thing” because Israel’s enemies were weakened.