JACKI LYDEN, host:
In Northern Iraq, there is no word on the fate of Paulos Faraj Raho, the Chaldean Catholic Archbishop, who was kidnapped in Mozul on Friday. A group of gunmen ambushed him as he drove away from the Church of the Holy Spirit in Mosul where he had just celebrated mass. The gunmen killed his driver and two guards accompanying him.
Christians are a tiny minority in mostly Muslim Iraq, but they have an ancient history there. Al-Qaida and Iraq has branded them as crusaders and targeted them in Basra, Baghdad, Mosul and other cities. Thousands have fled the country.
Pope Benedict XVI has condemned the abduction and killings and called for Archbishop Raho's safe return, so have the European Union and the United Nations envoy to Iraq. No one has claimed responsibility for the abduction and killings. A U.S. military spokesman said that the U.S. and Iraqi forces are looking for the kidnappers. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
