Jaffna Bishop writes to President about missing priest

COLOMBO: Jaffna Bishop Rt. Rev. Dr. Thomas Saundaranayagam has written to President Mahinda Rajapaksa about Rev. Fr. Thiruchelvam Nihal Jim Brown, 34, who has been missing from the Jaffna diocese from August 20.

Layman W. V. Vimalathas, 39, who assisted the priest has also gone missing.

According to the Bishop, Fr. Brown had been at St. Philip Neri's Church in Allaipetty, when the church had come under artillery attack on August 13. The attack had left nearly over 100 civilians injured. While 20 had been killed, about 30 had been seriously injured.

The Bishop has appealed to the President to bring the conflict to an end and to uphold the strict observance of the ceasefire agreement and to proceed with negotiations for peace and for a political solution.

"I make this urgent appeal to the LTTE leader too," he said in the letter.