Judicial Police Detain Two Germans after Kidnappers Free them
The Judicial police detained on Saturday two German citizens after they were freed from their kidnappers in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa over drug trafficking accusations, the state-run National News Agency reported.
The news agency reported that the two Germans were kidnapped after financial disputes with their abductors.
The Germans reportedly failed to pay their kidnappers 5,000 Euros.
A soldier and suspect Mohammed Shuqair were killed during a raid by the Lebanese army in the Dar al-Wasiaa area in the Bekaa to detain the kidnappers of the Germans.
The two men were freed in the Bekaa town of Douris in the Baalbek district after resolving financial disputes that led to their abduction.
The two Germans, who were kidnapped on Friday overnight, were "taken to an unknown location" after their kidnappers tried in vain to coerce a cash transfer bureau to hand over money in one of the abductees' names.
"The kidnappers later made a call to one of their friends, demanding the payment.”
The two men hold both German and Lebanese citizenship.
The kidnapping is the first of its kind since 2011, when a group of seven Estonian cyclists were abducted for four months.
An Army Command statement issued on Saturday explained that Shuqair was wanted for several offenses, including killing an Internal Security Forces member and a citizen firing at military and security forces.
On Saturday, Shuqair opened fire at an army patrol in Dar al-Wasiaa in Baalbek, killing a soldier.
The patrol fired back and killed the suspect.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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