Church not aware of ransom demand for kidnapped priest

Mangalore Today News Network

Kottayam, Apr 02, 2016: The Salesian authorities have said they were unaware of the video demanding ransom for Rev  Thomas Uzhunnalil, who was kidnapped by suspected Islamic militants in Yemen.

Expressing satisfaction over the efforts being taken by the central government for his release, the Church requested all concerned not to politicise the issue.

Fr. Thomas, belonging to the Bangalore province of the Salesians, was kidnapped by Islamic State gunmen from  war torn Aden in southern Yemen on March 4.

The central government has reportedly received vital information from its Yemeni agents on the involvement of an ISIS affiliate group in the incident.

A video demanding millions of dollars in return for his release has reportedly surfaced. However, the church authorities said that they have no knowledge of the ransom video.

Even if the Central Government had received such demands from abductors, we assume that the former would not reveal the details as it would affect the efforts to secure his release, the church authorities said.

“We are pinning hopes on the central government’s positive approach to the issue. We strongly condemn the efforts on part of political parties to communalise such an unfortunate incident,” they added.

Fr. George, who was with Fr. Tom in Yemen, will return to India in two days.