Two Saudis lured into apartment, kidnapped for 8 days

Two Saudi citizens Toufik al-Shakakik and Abdullah al-Shakakik arrived on Monday April 16 to Lebanon via Beirut International Airport on a tourist visit that soon turned into a nightmare. The same day an Iraqi girl living in Beirut lured them into a rented apartment in the area of Dawhat al-Hoss.  

As soon as they entered the apartment, three Iraqis ambushed, beat, tortured and held them captive for eight consecutive days. They forced them to call their parents in Saudi Arabia asking for a $100,000 ransom in exchange for their release.    

The parents called the Saudi Embassy in Lebanon. On Saturday April 21 the embassy contacted a special security apparatus that advised the parents to contact the captors and negotiate a meeting to exchange the cash for the captives’ freedom.  

The kidnappers agreed to meet the family at Audi Bank in the Beirut neighborhood of Hamra where the information branch quickly ambushed two of them while the girl and a third Iraqi suspect are still at large. The abducted were released on April 23.  

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awad Assiri was the one who divulged the news, urging Saudi citizens visiting Lebanon to exercise caution, avoid border areas, not to trust strangers who offer them suspicious services, stay in reputable hotels and steer clear from private apartments.