The Synod of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch, led by Patriarch Yohanna X Yazigi, has appointed Bishop Efrem Maalouli as new metropolitan of the Greek Orthodox archieparchy of Aleppo and Alexandretta. The appointment also acquires importance in light of the fact that the assigned episcopal see had been vacant for more than eight years, following the mysterious disappearance of Boulos Yazigi, the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Aleppo who disappeared on April 22, 2013 together with Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim, Syrian Orthodox metropolitan in the same Syrian metropolis.

The disappearance of the two metropolitans of Aleppo, which took place at the height of the Syrian civil war, represents one of the best known and most controversial facts among the many painful events that have marked in recent years the path of the indigenous ecclesial communities present in Syria since the times of apostolic preaching.

The two metropolitan bishops of Aleppo were kidnapped in the area between the Syrian metropolis and the border with Turkey. The car in which the two bishops were traveling was blocked by the group of kidnappers and the driver - the Latin rite Catholic Fatha 'Allah Kabboud, father of three children - was shot in the head. The kidnapping was not claimed by any group, and since then no details have emerged regarding the reasons for the kidnapping and the fate of the two clergymen.