ICC Note:
A French preist kidnapped by Islamic militants on November 13 was released in Cameron after six weeks in captivity. Shortly after the priest was abducted, Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. Boko Haram has been fighting a large scale insurgency in northern Nigeria in an attempted to establish a separate Islamic state. As a part of its strategy, Boko Haram has violently attacked Christians to purify the population living in northern Nigeria. It is not known why Boko Haram released the priest on Tuesday, but he is in good health and good spirits. 
12/31/2013 Nigeria (Global Post) – A French Roman Catholic priest abducted by Islamic militants in Cameroon was released on Tuesday after a six-week ordeal.
Georges Vandenbeusch, 42, was kidnapped on November 13 by heavily armed men who burst into his parish at night in the far north of the central African country and reportedly took him to neighbouring Nigeria.
He was flown to the Camaroon capital Yaounde where he was taken to the French ambassador’s residence.
French President Francois Hollande had announced the news in a statement in which he thanked both Nigerian and Cameroonian authorities for helping secure the priest’s release, and particularly Cameroon’s President Paul Biya for his “personal involvement”.
The radical Islamist movement Boko Haram, which has killed thousands of people in attacks against Christians and government targets in northern Nigeria, claimed responsibility for holding the French priest soon after he was kidnapped.
The Nigerian army announced on Monday that it had begun a major ground and air offensive against Boko Haram close to Bama, which is near the porous border with Cameroon.
In the ongoing assault, troops killed 56 Boko Haram fighters, military spokesman Major-General Chris Olukolade said.
But Olukolade said Tuesday the Nigerian army was not involved in the release of the French priest.
“I have not received any briefings on the incident because the military were not involved,” he said.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius was also due to fly to Yaounde to greet the priest, and the two were expected to come back to Paris on Wednesday.
“It’s really, really good news. We were working on this for some time, in close contact with… President Biya who has been extremely active and useful,” Fabius told RTL radio.
He added that initial reports indicated Vandenbeusch was in good health.
…
[Full Story]