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RIYADH,
Jan 17 (PNS): A Saudi family, which claims that
one of its members was "kidnapped" by US
intelligence in Pakistan, has decided to sue the
United States government, an Arabic newspaper
reported.
Relatives said they lost track of Abdullah Al-Matrafi,
director of the Wafa charity, on Dec. 10 after
he called them from Lahore airport in Pakistan,
shortly before he was supposed to board an
Emirates flight to Jeddah via Dubai.
Wafa appeared on a US list of organizations
suspected of funding terrorism in October, but
its director denied the allegation on Qatar's
Al-Jazeera television, Abdullah's brother
Muhammad told Al-Hayat daily.
Abdullah, 39, had been in Afghanistan during the
US-led war and Wafa's stores were a target of US
bombings in which seven of its aid workers were
killed, including four Saudis, Muhammad said.
Lahore airport authorities and the airline told
the family that Abdullah had in fact boarded the
Emirates flights at Lahore for Dubai, and at
Dubai for Jeddah, but he had never arrived
there.
Muhammad said he had been told Abdullah had been
detained by the Americans, adding, "This is
nothing but piracy, carried out by a
superpower."
Abdullah explained in the TV interview that Wafa
was involved in constructing mosques, digging
wells, setting up medical centers and running a
hospital in Kabul. He also said he was ready to
show the charity's accounts to anyone.
After leaving Kabul due to US air raids,
Abdullah was seriously injured in the bombings.
He suffered a fractured leg and ribs and burns
in various parts of the body, Muhammad said.
Abdullah's father said his son, who has three
children, spent most of his life in charity work
and was never involved in politics. He worked as
director for a fund-raising committee for Bosnia
for five years.
Later, Abdullah went to Makkah where he joined a
dawa center and worked as an imam. He went to
Afghanistan two years ago and founded Wafa.
Muhammad said he had already contacted a Saudi
lawyer and was planning to sue the US State
Department for including Wafa in the terrorist
list without evidence, and the US government for
"kidnapping" his brother. He also plans to sue
Dubai-based Emirates.
The Emirates airline yesterday denied
suggestions that Abdullah was "kidnapped". "Our
records show that Abdullah Al-Matrafi did not
board the Emirates flight from Lahore to Dubai,"
said Hatem Omar, the airline's public relations
officer. But Muhammad Al-Matrafi insisted that
he had proof that Abdullah was on Emirates
Flight 675 from Lahore to Dubai.
In a related development, Abdul Hakeem Bukhari,
a Saudi from Makkah who was reported to be among
a group of prisoners in Afghanistan, telephoned
his family on Monday, saying he was in a
Kandahar jail, Asharq Al-Awsat daily reported.
Abdul Rahman Al-Bukhari, a member of the family,
said Abdul Hakeem had no links with Al-Qaeda
organization of Osama Bin Laden. "Abdul Hakeem
went to Pakistan about five months ago for
medical treatment and returned to the Kingdom
before the Sept. 11 attacks," Abdul Rahman said.
Abdul Hakeem again went to Pakistan after the
terror attacks thinking he could purchase Afghan
carpets at bargain prices. "Until the last
quarter of December, we had no information about
Abdul Hakeem, until we received a telephone call
from him in which he said he was imprisoned by
the Taliban. "Then the line was cut off," he
told the paper.
SOURCE: PNS
http://www.cageprisoners.com/
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