Thiruvananthapuram: India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has assuredto help trace two Catholic missionaries from the country who have gone missing in Yemen.
The nun, Sister Sally, is the superior of the Missionaries of Charity convent in Aden, Yemen’s southern city, that was attacked by unidentified gunmen on Friday. The priest, Salesian Father Tomy Uzhunnalil, was residing at the convent after his church was burned down by Islamic militants in September 2015.
The nuns were managing a home for the elderly. Four nuns, including one from India, were among 16 people killed in the attack by suspected Islamic militants.
The missing priest is a native of the southern Indian state of Kerala while Sister Sally hails from Chhattisgarh, central India.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy told Indo-Asian News Service that Swaraj has assured to help in tracing the two missionaries. “I spoke to her about the reports of a missing Kerala priest and sought help to locate him. She said the Indian embassy has now been closed down and also expressed doubts of the efficacy of the government there, but she has assured that the center will do its best,” he said.
Chandy said it was Swaraj who told that the nun belongs to Chhattisgarh and that she has also gone missing from the care home in Aden.
Earlier, an aide of Chandy keeping track of Kerala people in Yemen, said Sister Sally had a narrow escape when the gunmen opened fire at the care home. The official said the priest was taken away by the gunmen, while Sr Sally was moved to a safe place by the local people after hearing the gun shots.
“We are in close touch with our people in Yemen who are closely following the developments there,” he added.
The slain Indian nun has been identified as Sister M. Anseleme, 57, from Jharkhand. Among the other victims, two nuns were from Rwanda and another from Kenya.
Mother Teresa set up the home in 1992 that now houses 61 elderly people.
News reports indicate that these unidentified gunmen belonged to the Yemen-based affiliate of the Islamic State (IS) group.