Family asks department to help free son held in Baghdad by US forces

THE FAMILY of an 18-year-old Irish citizen, detained by US forces in Baghdad last week, has called on the Department of Foreign Affairs to have him returned to Ireland as soon as possible.

The family of Abbas Alubaidi from Churchtown, Dublin, fear the student may be moved out of a holding centre were he is being kept in the Iraqi capital and transported before they can have him released.

The 16-year-old brother of Abbas, Zaid Alubaidi, said yesterday his family, who have lived in Ireland for 10 years, were very worried.

He said his brother travelled to Baghdad in February to take a break from his studies and to learn Arabic, which he intended to take in his Leaving Certificate next year.

He was to return to Dublin in August this year, Zaid said, but was arrested by US troops 10 days ago during a raid on his uncle’s house.

“There are wires everywhere in Baghdad, on all the houses; one wire was hanging down from my uncle’s house.

“The Americans followed it and it was a bomb,” he said.

“My uncle did not know. When the Americans called to the house my brother opened the door and they took him.

“They searched the house and found nothing, not even a single bullet, but they took my cousin, my uncle and my brother, and they took the money that was there.”

The three have been detained at Khadymia, a holding centre in Baghdad, one of many throughout the country, Zaid said.

“We are very, very worried about him.

“We are afraid they’ll move him somewhere, or leave him there and totally forget about him; that’s what they do,” he said.

The family visited the Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday, but felt they were not being listened to.

“They are doing nothing,” Zaid said.

A spokesman from the department said they were aware of the case.

He said staff at the Irish Embassy in Cairo were liaising with the British embassy in Baghdad.

“We are also liaising with the American embassy in Dublin,” he said.