True heroes have emerged on the Lebanon-Syria border after a Saudi man who had been taken by gunpoint by violent kidnappers for a tidy sum was saved by a brave legion from the Lebanese army’s intelligence unit.
The man, Mshari Al Mutairi, is a Saudia airlines worker who was being held captive for $400,000, according to KSA TV station Al-Ekhbariya.
Luckily, the officials managed to get him to safety after a frantic search was successful in identifying his location.
The special forces somehow managed to get him out with his life.
How Mshari Al Mutairi was taken captive: The full story
Al Mutairi’s nightmare began on early Saturday morning just as the airline worker was heading the Beirut airport to begin his shift as an administrative employee for the KSA airline’s Beirut office.
According to officials in Beirut, he was on the road to Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport when he suddenly disappeared, and though his coworkers realized he didn’t show up for work, it was actually his family that realized something was up.
The Kingdom’s embassy in Lebanon received “a notification from the family of a Saudi citizen about losing contact with him,” and were unable to find their beloved relative.
Quickly, the family realized that he had not overslept for work, and something much more nefarious was at play when they received a series of audio messages from the kidnappers.
“The Saudi citizen, Mashari M., who is an employee of Saudi Airlines in Beirut and lives in the Aramoun area in Mount Lebanon, was kidnapped at around 3 a.m. on Saturday in Beirut. The kidnappers contacted his family from the southern suburbs of Beirut and demanded a financial ransom,” said a statement from the country’s Embassy in Lebanon.
The abduction was carried out by seven people using stolen cars. Three of the wrong-doers were wearing fake military uniforms but were not in fact soldiers.
Authorities worked tirelessly since Saturday night until Monday night, a grueling 48 hours in which Al Mutairi’s life hung in the balance.
How special forces saved the abducted man
The army intelligence was able to identify four of the kidnappers, raiding their homes and ultimately using that information to find the men.
Luckily, once they identified his location on the border, in the Al-Sharawneh neighborhood in Baalbek and Chtaura.
They were able to wrangle together a special ops mission to get in and successfully save the airline worker.
According to officials, 12 people were in turn captured and arrested for their alleged crimes.
Al Mutairi is now being kept safely in the Army Intelligence office in Hermel.
This is undoubtably the most amazing story you will hear out of the Middle East today!
Saudi Arabia promises ‘iron fist’ to protect citizens
KSA’s Minister of Interior Bassam Mawlawi tweeted out a severe warning to potential criminals of this ilk.
“With an iron fist, we work to liberate any citizen who is exposed to any harm on Lebanese soil.
“What happened affects Lebanon’s relationship with its brothers, and the perpetrators will be punished harshly.”
Lebanon’s Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati also condemned the event.
“The kidnapping of a KSA citizen is condemned by all standards, and we congratulate the army for the great effort it made to release him and arrest those involved in the kidnapping.
“We are keen on the return of all Arab brothers to Lebanon and preventing any threat to them, in addition to preventing the use of Lebanese territory as a springboard for any action that threatens the security and safety of Arab countries.”