Italian priest released after month of captivity in Philippines

An Italian missionary priest kidnapped more than a month ago has been released following negotiations with a rogue faction of a Muslim separatist group, Philippine police said Friday.

The Rev. Giancarlo Bossi, 57, was kidnapped on June 10 in the Southeast Asian nation's volatile south. He was freed around 9 p.m. (1300 GMT) Thursday along the boundary between Lanao Del Sur and Lanau Del Norte provinces, said Chief Superintendent Jaime Caringal, a regional police commander.

"He's being subjected now to medical examination," Caringal said. "He is well, but he lost a lot of weight."