Lebanon is eager to end the ordeal of abducted Kuwaiti citizen Issam Al-Houti in Lebanon soon, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said yesterday in a phone conversation with Kuwaiti counterpart Jassem Al-Khorafi. "All Lebanese security agencies are on highest state of alert to find the Kuwaiti citizen and guarantee his immediate release," Al-Khorafi quoted Berri as saying.

“Lebanese people do not forget the noble and supportive stances of Kuwaiti leadership and people,” he said, adding that Lebanese government will not condone any action that harms the special relations between the two Arab nations. Berri noted that he is following up efforts exerted by security agencies to release Al-Houti. He asked Al- Khorafi to convey his greetings to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Al-Khorafi thanked Berri for the great efforts and attention he and Lebanese government giving to the issue, hoping the ordeal of the abducted citizen will end as soon as possible.

Al-Houti, 52, was seized at gunpoint after his car was intercepted by an unknown armed group in the Beqaa Valley in Saturday. Berri said here yesterday that the current situation in the country was detrimental to tourism, citing that around 50,000 Kuwaitis left the country. Berri was giving an interview to Annahar news daily. The Lebanese speaker also touched upon the situation in the country and the measures that should be taken to safeguard all individuals. The Lebanese official also discussed the upcoming visit by Pope Benedict XVI to the country, hoping that it would occur when the situation in Lebanon calms down.

Lebanon condemned the abduction of Al-Houti in Lebanon. This was conveyed through a phone call that Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah received from Lebanese foreign minister Adnan Mansour, who expressed the condemnation of the President, Prime Minister and people of Lebanon over the kidnapping. Mansour said that the Lebanese authorities were exerting efforts to secure the release of the citizen.

The Lebanese top diplomat said that top authorities in his country were in constant touch with the Kuwaiti side to brief them of whatever new information available over the abduction. The abduction “is a personal act and is not related to the organized acts and aim at citizens of specific countries,” said Mansour. The abduction shall not undermine relations between Lebanon and Kuwait, said Mansour. Meanwhile, despite receiving warnings from Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry, many citizens have refused to leave the country, insisting that they are capable of protecting themselves amid the unrest taking place there, a top ministry official said.

“The Foreign Ministry previously warned Kuwaitis in Lebanon of the unrest there and asked them to leave. But unfortunately, few responded to the warnings while many asserted that they can protect themselves against danger,” said the insider who spoke to Al- Jarida.

These statements were made Saturday, the same day citizen Issam Al-Houti was kidnapped by armed men in Lebanon. The source indicated that Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah “assigned Kuwait’s ambassador in Beirut to carry out necessary procedures with Lebanese authorities to secure the release of the kidnapped citizen.” Meanwhile, the source reiterated calls made to Kuwaitis remaining in Lebanon “to coordinate with the Kuwaiti embassy to return home as soon as possible”, noting that allocating flights to carry them back home remains an option “yet we hope that they do not return empty,” reported Al-jarida.