Benedict XVI appeals for release of priest kidnapped in Baghdad

The pope urged Christians to continue working together with members of other religions in peaceful coexistence.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) -  In a telegram to the Chaldean Patriarch of Baghdad, Benedict XVI has made an appeal for the release of Fr Hanna Saad Syrop, a priest kidnapped on the Feast of the Assumption in Baghdad.

The telegram, signed by Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, was issued yesterday. The "heartfelt" appeal urged the abductors "to release the young priest… so that he can return to the service of god, the Christian community and his countrymen." The pope said the news of the kidnapping had "deeply saddened" him.

At the same time, Benedict XVI said his thoughts went to "all the victims of abduction" in Iraq, who amount to thousands, and he "prays that this dreadful scourge, as well as the terrible daily bloodshed which delays the dawn of reconciliation and rebuilding will finally come to an end".

Fr Saad was kidnapped shortly after Vespers Mass on 15 August and there has been no news of him since. The 34-year-old priest, ordained in Rome in 2001, is in charge of the theological department of Babel College, the university of Christian religious studies in Baghdad, the only one in the country.

As to why the priest was kidnapped, some say the most likely reason is to demand a ransom in cash. But Mgr Louis Sako, the Archbishop of Kirkuk, said one of the reasons behind this act of violence was that "they want to push Christians out of Iraq".

In the telegram sent to Patriarch Delly, the pope expressed his "spiritual closeness and prayerful solidarity" with the Chaldean church and he encouraged "members of the Catholic community to continue to work together with all religious believers and people of good will towards a future of harmonious and respectful coexistence for the beloved nation of Iraq."

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