Manama: A Saudi national has been missing in Lebanon amid concerns that he has been kidnapped, a Saudi news site has reported. According to the report published by Sabq, Khalid Bin Farooq Al Qarshi, 32, was seemingly kidnapped in the Lebanese capital Beirut 18 days ago and the kidnappers asked for a $100,000 (Dh367,214) ransom. They have cut off two of his fingers and they are ready to sever more parts of his body and kill him if the money is not paid, the report said.
Al Qarshi, a state employee and a resident of Madinah in western Saudi Arabia, had been reportedly married to a Syrian before the couple divorced. The mother took their daughter, seven, to her town in Syria, and recently her family contacted him to inform him that they would allow him to take her back to Saudi Arabia if he paid them 100,000 riyals (Dh97,903). Al Qarshi accepted the deal and he agreed with his former wife’s family to meet at the Saudi embassy in Beirut. According to the report, the Saudi national was kidnapped in front of the embassy building and the kidnappers demanded $100,000 to release him.
However, Ali Awadh Aseeri, the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon, on Tuesday said that Al Qarshi had not been kidnapped in front of the embassy. “There is a lot of mystery surrounding the case,” he said. “Al Qarshi went on his own volition to a town near the Syrian and Lebanese border. He had an issue with the family of his former wife and wanted to take back his daughter who was living with them. The embassy tried to convince him not to go there, but he insisted on making the move. The embassy rejects all forms of blackmail and ransom and is looking into the case with the concerned Lebanese authorities to ensure he is safe and well,” he said, quoted by Sabq.
Saudi Arabia, like the other five member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), has advised its citizens to avoid Lebanon, citing security concerns. They have also requested their citizens staying in the Mediterranean country to leave as soon as they can.
