A special prayer rally has been held in Dublin calling for the safe return of kidnapped Irish priest Father Michael Sinnott.

The Philippine military says a video released by the kidnappers of Irish missionary priest Fr Michael Sinnott could give them vital clues to his location.

The Philippine government rejected a US$2m (€1.3m) ransom demanded by the kidnappers of an Irish priest Michael Sinnott in the country's volatile south and said today that efforts would continue to safely secure his freedom.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs has said that no effort will be spared in securing the release of kidnapped Irish priest Father Michael Sinnott.

Kidnappers of an Irish missionary seized in the southern Philippines are demanding a €1.4m ransom in exchange for his freedom.

The elderly Irish priest snatched by a kidnap gang in the Philippines is believed to be alive and has received vital medicine for a heart problem, it emerged today.

A rally will be held in the Philippines later today to demand the release of an Irish priest being held captive there.

A massive public rally will be held tomorrow in the Philippines demanding a kidnap gang release an ailing Wexford-born priest snatched almost a fortnight ago.

The Department of Foreign Affairs says it has been assured by the Philippine Government that rumours surrounding the fate of kidnapped priest Fr Michael Sinnott have not been verified.

Prayers have been said at masses across the country for Fr. Michael Sinnott who is being held by an armed gang in the Philippines.

The Philippine government today asked a large Muslim rebel group to help secure the freedom of an ailing Irish priest kidnapped by outlaws, as troops surrounded a jungle logging area where he was being held.

Troops and navy gunboats in the Philippines tried to encircle suspected Muslim militants to pressure them into releasing kidnapped priest Michael Sinnott, a military general said today.

Missionaries tonight pleaded with a kidnap gang who took an ailing Irish priest hostage to allow him access to vital heart medication.

The Irish ambassador to Singapore is travelling to the Philippines to help secure the release of Fr Michael Sinnott, who was abducted by armed men yesterday.

An ailing 79-year-old Irish missionary dragged away at gunpoint from his southern Philippine residence is probably in the hands of Muslim militants seeking a ransom, officials said today.

Fears were growing today for the health of an elderly Irish missionary who was dramatically kidnapped in the Philippines by armed raiders who burst into his home.