2013-12-03 15:35:54

Nuns feared kidnapped by Syrian rebels


December 03, 2013 - The mother superior of a Syrian convent says 12 nuns have been abducted by opposition fighters and taken to a rebel-held town. Mother Febronia Nabhan, Superior of the Saidnaya Convent, said on Tuesday that the nuns and three other women were taken on Monday from another convent in the predominantly Christian village of Maaloula to the nearby town of Yabroud, about 20 km to the north. Mother Nabhan told The Associated Press that the Maaloula convent's superior, Moher Pelagia Sayaf, called her later that day and said they were all ``fine and safe.'' Meanwhile, Apostolic Nuncio to Syria, Archbishop Mario Zenari told Reuters on Tuesday about the 12 nuns been taken from Maaloula to Yabroud, but could not say if it was kidnaping or evacuation. He said the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate had told him armed men had entered the monastery Monday afternoon. They forced the sisters to evacuate and to follow them towards Yabroud. The fighting, which pits al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front fighters and other rebels against Assad's forces, is part of a wider struggle for control of the Damascus-Homs highway in central Syria. Syrian state television said Christians had held a service in Damascus on Monday to protest against the capture of the nuns and the kidnapping of two bishops near Aleppo in April. (Source: AP/Reuters)








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