Syrian priest Fr Jacques Mourad has been freed five months after he was kidnapped by ISIS near Homs.
For security reasons no details of his release have been shared, but it has been confirmed that the Catholic priest is no longer in captivity.
"Fr Mourad is free. He is currently in the village of Zaydal. The priest of the Syriac Catholic Church celebrated mass this morning in Zaydal," a Catholic source told AFP.
His release is the first of its kind; ISIS has never before released any clerical prisoners.
Mourad had lived in al-Qaryatain, once a Christian majority village, where he served as the head of Mar Elian monastery. He was kidnapped in May when the nearby city Palmyra was captured.
Al-Qaryatain has since been seized by ISIS in August, forcing the once 2000-strong Christian population to flee.
The Mar Elian monastery was destroyed by ISIS extremists in late August.
