Fr Tom Uzhunnalil meets Pope Francis at Vatican
- Father Tom Uzhunnalil met Pope Francis at his Santa Marta residence in the Vatican on Wednesday
- Fr Uzhunnalil kissed the Pope’s hand and touched his feet. The Pope hugged the priest and told him that he was praying for him
FollowKeralite priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday, a day after his release from Islamic State's captivity.
Fr Uzhunnalil, who was rescued from Yemen on Tuesday with the intervention of the Oman government, was abducted by the Islamic State from a care home in Aden back in March 2016.
Kerala rejoices as Fr Tom Uzhunnalil reaches Vatican
The priest arrived at the Vatican on Tuesday and met the Pope at his Santa Marta residence a day later. Fr Uzhunnalil kissed the Pope’s hand and touched his feet. The Pope hugged the priest and told him that he was praying for him while he was in captivity.
Meanwhile, the Centre has said that no ransom amount was paid to abductors for the release of Fr Uzhunnalil.
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VK Singh, Union minister of state for external affairs, said "no" when asked whether any ransom was paid for the release of the priest and underlined that the Ministry of External Affairs "works quietly without noise, but ultimately gets the work done".Â
"Release of Father Uzhunnalil underlines one thing that the Ministry of External Affairs works quietly and without noise, but ultimately gets the work done," VK Singh pointed out.
Photo courtesy: National Catholic Register/L'Osservatore Romano
