The murder of Father Frans van der Lugt fills us with great sorrow. Father Frans was selflessly committed to working for the people of Homs, not wanting to leave them even in the most difficult of circumstances.

It is with profound concern that we observe the increasing degree to which religious minorities, including Christians, are being targeted by Islamist terrorists.

In this context, we call for the immediate release of representatives of Christian churches who have been abducted, among them Jesuit priest Father Paolo Dall’Oglio, Syrian-Orthodox Metropolitan Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek-Orthodox Metropolitan Boulos Yazigi.