  
Washington, DC (BWA)--Emmanuel Pierre, general secretary of the Baptist Convention of Haiti (BCH) who was kidnapped in the wee ours of Thursday morning, has been released unharmed by his kidnappers.
Several armed men broke into Pierre's home in Cap-Haïtien at approximately 2 a.m. on September 29, took him by force, and demanded a ransom for his safe release.
Pierre was released at approximately 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. No ransom was paid.
"We are glad to inform you that Rev. Emmanuel Pierre was safely released this afternoon," Joel Dorsinville, coordinator for disaster relief for the BCH, told the Baptist World Alliance (BWA). "He is now back home with his family. Thank you all for your support in prayers."
"We do praise the Lord. Let us continue to pray for him and his family," said Jules Casseus, president of the Northern Haiti Christian University, which is owned by the BCH.
"It is with joy that we receive news that Emmanuel has returned safely to his family," BWA General Secretary Neville Callam said. "We thank God for God's grace and protection upon our brother and express appreciation to Baptists around the world who prayed along with our Baptist brothers and sisters in Haiti."
"We join with family, friends and the Baptist community in celebrating the safe release of the Rev. Emmanuel Pierre," wrote Everton Jackson, BWA regional secretary for the Caribbean and executive secretary/treasurer for the Caribbean Baptist Fellowship. "The family and the Baptist convention [in Haiti] have expressed their appreciation to all for standing with them in prayerful solidarity."
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