Report: Jesuit kidnapped in Syria was meeting with rebel forces
August 27, 2013
Before he was kidnapped, Father Paolo Dall’Oglio traveled to Ar-Raqqah, a north-central Syrian city of 220,000, to smooth tensions between rival rebel groups, according to a report from the Fides news agency.
The Jesuit priest, a critic of the Assad regime, had been expelled from Syria. According to the Fides report, which cited anonymous local sources, Father Dall’Oglio reentered Syria with the help of Kurdish rebels and praised the Syrian revolution during a demonstration. He reportedly entered Ar-Raqqah to open a line of communication between the jihadists who control the city and the Free Syrian Army, the principal rebel group.
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Further information:
- The turbulent context of Raqqa and the mission of Fr. Paolo Dall'Oglio (Fides)
- Ar-Raqqah (Wikipedia)
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