Pope leads prayers for kidnapped women

Pope John Paul II led prayers today for the release of two Italian aid workers kidnapped by an armed gang in Iraq, while Premier Silvio Berlusconi urged a united front against terrorism.

Simona Pari and Simona Torretta, 29, were seized from their offices in central Baghdad after an attack by a group of men in olive-green uniforms. Two Iraqis, a man and a woman, were also kidnapped in the raid.