A gang has kidnapped and tortured a Syrian young man in Lebanon, extorting his family for financial ransom in exchange for his release. The "Wenee El Dawla" network reported that "professional criminal gangs have begun to publish advertisements on social media to lure Syrian refugees." It added that "these gangs try to convince Syrians of the existence of quick and safe routes to travel to European countries for a small fee, only for them to end up in complex kidnapping operations."
As an example of what these gangs do, the network revealed that the Syrian young man, A. S., fell into a trap set by a Syrian-Lebanese kidnapping gang that lured him from his home on the airport road. He was taken by an unknown person on a motorcycle to an unknown location after he informed his friends that he was heading to Europe, and then he completely vanished.
Two days after his kidnapping, his family received video messages and photos showing A. S. being tortured and beaten, along with a message from the gang demanding a ransom for his release; otherwise, they would dismember his body. One of the recordings published by the network showed the young man bound in chains and nearly naked, while one of the kidnappers was beating him. According to the source, no member of Aiham's family has filed a complaint with the security forces against the gang due to their lack of legal entry documents into Lebanon.
