Lebanese army frees kidnapped Saudi national - statement

"A patrol of the Intelligence Directorate managed to free the kidnapped Saudi Mashari Al-Mutairi after a qualitative operation on the Lebanese border, and a number of those involved in the kidnapping were also arrested," the Lebanese Army said in a statement on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia announced a return of its ambassador to Lebanon in April 2022 as ties appeared to improve after hitting rock bottom in 2021, when the kingdom and other Gulf states withdrew their envoys.

Lebanese Army Intelligence has freed a Saudi national who was abducted on Sunday in Beirut and arrested some people involved in the incident. "A patrol of the Intelligence Directorate managed to free the kidnapped Saudi Mashari Al-Mutairi after a qualitative operation on the Lebanese border, and a number of those involved in the kidnapping were also arrested," the Lebanese Army said in a statement on Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia announced a return of its ambassador to Lebanon in April 2022 as ties appeared to improve after hitting rock bottom in 2021, when the kingdom and other Gulf states withdrew their envoys. Saudi Arabia and fellow wealthy Gulf states were once major donors for Lebanon but relations have been strained for years by the growing influence of the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.