In Iraq, Muslim kidnappers in Kirkuk on 16.09.09 dropped a seriously ill Christian doctor in front of a mosque after 29 days of torture and threats against him and his family. After his 23-year-old daughter's conversations with the terrorists, 55-year-old Sameer Youssif was freed, but had wounds and bruises all over his body. The kidnappers first demanded $2.5 million. Later it was $500,000.
The kidnappers contacted the doctor's friends with threats that if they didn't get the money, they would kill him. "They threatened us all the time," said the daughter. "We lived, prayed and fasted behind locked doors for fear of being killed."
The doctor was released after the father-in-law handed over the ransom. "He is still hospitalized but is recovering," his family said.
