ADEN // An Indian priest kidnapped after an attack on a care home in Aden last year has appeared in a video recording appealing for help.
Father Tom Uzhunnalil was abducted in March 2016 when four gunmen posing as relatives of one of the residents at the home burst inside, killing four Indian nuns, two Yemeni female staff members, eight elderly residents and a guard.
No group has admitted carrying out the attack, but he is believed to be held by ISIL militants. Yemen president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi has called it an act of terrorism.
"They are treating me well to the extent they are able," Father Uzhunnalil said in a recording carried by the Aden Time news website.
“My health condition is deteriorating quickly and I require hospitalisation as early as possible.”
The date April 15, 2017 was written on cardboard and pasted on his body.
“My dear family people, do what you can to help me be released. Please, please do what you can to help to get me released. May God bless you for that,” he said.
Aden’s minority Christian community have largely fled the southern port city. In March 2015, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels advanced on Aden, forcing government forces to flee. A Saudi-led Arab coalition has since helped local fighters expel the Houthis, but security in Aden has not been fully restored.
* Reuters
