Kidnapped Iraqi Archbishop Released

The Iraqi Catholic archbishop kidnapped Monday in the northwestern Iraqi city of Mosul was released today and said he hoped his ordeal would not be seen as an attack on the Church in the predominantly Muslim nation, according to recent reports.

"As soon as they found out I was a bishop, their attitude changed ... I think that my abduction was a coincidence. In recent times, there have been numerous kidnappings around here," said Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa, who was believed to have been the highest-ranking Catholic prelate to be abducted in Iraq.

"Based on the conversations I had with them (the kidnappers), it didn't appear to me that they wanted to strike at the Church as such."

According to Reuters, the 66-year old prelate told Vatican Radio he had been treated well during his one day in captivity.

Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said, "The kidnapping caused great surprise because the archbishop was well loved by both Christians and Muslims."

The Vatican, which yesterday demanded for Casmoussa's immediate release and condemned the abduction as an "act of terrorism," welcomed the archbishop's release.

Navarro-Valls said Pope John Paul II was "immediately informed and he thanked God for the happy outcome of this affair."

The Vatican also confirmed that no ransom had been paid despite earlier reports of a $200,000 ransom demand.