The Indian priest who was kidnapped by a terror group in Yemen last month has been report to be safe and shall released soon, a Catholic group said on Sunday, quoting the Indian Foreign Minister.

Father Tom Uzhunnalil who hails from Pala in Kerala, was in Yemen on missionary work when he was abducted by a group of gunmen. He was captured from the southern Yemeni city of Aden by gunmen who killed at least 15 people at an old people’s home in an attack that was condemned by Pope Francis.

A delegation of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) who held a meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj informed that the government has taken the necessary steps to secure the priest’s safe return.

“She has assured us Father Tom is safe and negotiations are on for his release which could happen very soon,” said Father Joseph Chinnaiyan, deputy secretary of the CBCI.

It was two weeks back that there were several reports that stated the priest was crucified by Islamic State militants on Good Friday. But it has not been confirmed by anybody so far; neither has any one claimed responsibility for last month’s attack in which gunmen killed four Indian nuns, two Yemeni female staff members, eight elderly residents and a guard.

Further, Father Chinnaiyan has asserted that the reports of priest’s death are inaccurate.

Aden has been racked by lawlessness since Hadi supporters, backed by Gulf Arab military forces, drove fighters of the Iran-allied Houthi group from the city in July last year.

Already many international aid groups have pulled most of their foreign staff from Yemen due to security concerns.

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