An Italian Jesuit priest, father Paolo Dall’Oglio has been kidnapped by al Qaeda-linked fighters in eastern Syria.

Opposition activists say he was taken by members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, a Sunni group operating in the area.

The priest was reportedly kidnapped from the rebel-held city of Raqqa where militant Islamists have taken control.

Dall’Oglio was expelled by the Syrian authorities last year after backing the uprising against President Bashar al Assad.