Rome, Italy, Oct 1, 2007 / 08:22 am
The SIR news agency is reporting that Father Nicholas Pillai Packiya Ranjith, a diocesan missionary priest, was killed in Sri Lanka by a mine detonated by remote control.
Father Ranjith coordinated the activities of the Jesuit Refugees Service, an international humanitarian organization of the Jesuits of the Diocese of Mannar, which is located in southern Sri Lanka.
At the time of the homicide, he was taking food and first aid supplies to an orphanage and to refugee camps in Vidathaltheevu.
According to the Jesuit Relief Service of Colombo, the priest was surprised by the explosion in a region controlled by the Tamil Homeland Liberation group. His assistant, Christopher Jujin, who was also riding in the truck that displayed a white flag, is listed in critical condition.