C
Coatimundi
Guest
Here is a bit of good news to end the year. 
*Georges Vandenbeusch was kidnapped by heavily armed men on Nov. 13 in the far north of Cameroon, about 18 miles (30 kilometers) from the border with Nigeria. There was never a claim of responsibility, but suspicion fell on the radical Islamic sect Boko Haram which operates in the area, the Koza region, or on Ansaru, a Boko Haram splinter group responsible for most kidnappings of foreigners there.
The zone has been flagged as a risk for terrorism and kidnapping, but the priest — who cared for Nigerian refugees — chose to stay on to “exercise his mission,” the French Foreign Ministry said at the time.
In a statement from his office, the French president thanked authorities in Cameroon and Nigeria for their “relentless” efforts in helping to free the priest. He “particularly” thanked Cameroon President Paul Biya for personally working on the case, but provided no details on how the release was secured. *
nytimes.com/aponline/2013/12/31/world/europe/ap-eu-france-priest-freed.html?src=un&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fjson8.nytimes.com%2Fpages%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Findex.jsonp&_r=0
*Georges Vandenbeusch was kidnapped by heavily armed men on Nov. 13 in the far north of Cameroon, about 18 miles (30 kilometers) from the border with Nigeria. There was never a claim of responsibility, but suspicion fell on the radical Islamic sect Boko Haram which operates in the area, the Koza region, or on Ansaru, a Boko Haram splinter group responsible for most kidnappings of foreigners there.
The zone has been flagged as a risk for terrorism and kidnapping, but the priest — who cared for Nigerian refugees — chose to stay on to “exercise his mission,” the French Foreign Ministry said at the time.
In a statement from his office, the French president thanked authorities in Cameroon and Nigeria for their “relentless” efforts in helping to free the priest. He “particularly” thanked Cameroon President Paul Biya for personally working on the case, but provided no details on how the release was secured. *
nytimes.com/aponline/2013/12/31/world/europe/ap-eu-france-priest-freed.html?src=un&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fjson8.nytimes.com%2Fpages%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Findex.jsonp&_r=0