Earlier on Tuesday, May 22, when the Iraqi capital was rocked by a market bomb blast that killed dozens, there was confusion over the whereabouts of the 38-year-old priest, but Baghdad’s Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni said he could now confirm that the church leader had been freed.
In a published statement, he said the release took place late Monday, May 21, in a part of the city he refused to name apparently for security reasons. "When he saw" he "strongly embraced me. He was in tears and…He thanked all of those who had prayed for him in these days," including his parish Mar Pithion, the bishop said in remarks released by several media.
Catholic AsiaNews agency reported that Hanna’s showed signs "of having been beaten," although the bishop stressed the priest "has calmed" and is still in Baghdad. He made clear he hopes the priest will not join the hundreds of thousands of other Christian refugees staying in neighboring countries Jordan and Syria, after leaving Baghdad and other areas plagued by ethnic and religious strife.
NEW HOPE?
"Let us hope that he finds the courage to continue serving the Church in Iraq…His family have already moved abroad but he instead chose to remain with his parishioners," the bishop was quoted as saying by AsiaNews. Previously several other priests kidnapped in the capital were reportedly subsequently transferred to Northern Iraq or abroad amid concerns over their security.
Hanna was kidnapped Saturday, May 19, after leaving the home of a sick parishioner. Church sources said he stopped by a group of people who "had been waiting for him". The abductors immediately contacted the Patriarchate demanding what the bishop described as a "very high"
ransom for his release. There were reports that a six digit dollar figure had been demanded, much more than the church was able to pay. The bishop refused to say how much, if anything, had been paid, apparently amid concerns of more kidnappings in the future.
Hanna was reportedly the sixth Chaldean priest to be kidnapped in Baghdad during the past year. All were eventually released, reportedly bafter ransom money was paid. "Let us pray that events such as these do not happen again," the bishop said in comments monitored by BosNewsLife.
WIDER OPERATION
Iraqi Christians have made clear that Saturday’s kidnapping was part of "a wider operation of intimidation and violence" directed at the capital’s Christian community. Islamic militants reportedly have been carrying out a “door to door” campaign forcing people to "concert" to Islam or pay taxes for protection.
Many churches in Iraq’s Christian quarter of Dora have reportedly been forced to close, Christian families have fled, and important Catholic and other Christian institutions have been moved northwards or abroad amid violence and abductions. Before war broke out there were an estimated 750,000 Christians, most of them Chaldeans, an oriental rite Catholic community, as well as other groups and evangelicals, but many of them have fled.
Churches say there are perhaps as few as 200,000 Christians still staying in Iraq, but many have been displaced within the country after fleeing Baghdad and southern parts of the nation. (With reporting from Iraq and BosNewsLife Research).
