The Saudi Embassy in Canada has dismissed any link between the disappearance of Hamza Al-Shareef in Canada and the arrest of Khaled Al-Dawsari, the Saudi student held in the US for possessing materials of mass destruction. In an interview with Okaz/Saudi Gazette, Muhammad Al-Battah, Director of Saudi students' affairs in Canada, admitted that both students received SABIC scholarships to major in chemical engineering. However, he insisted, that is where the relationship between them ended. “There is no link at all between both cases. If the Canadian police found otherwise, they would've announced it,” he said. Al-Battah revealed that the Saudi Embassy has now formed a team to aid Canadian police in the search for Hamzah Al-Shareef. He said: “Some embassy staff members accompanied the police committee to Saskatoon where Hamzah went missing. They searched all his belongings including credit cards, cell phones and laptops but didn't find any traces of signs of violence or resistance.” Al-Battah insisted that the embassy is doing all it can to help in the search. He said Hamzah's photos have been posted in train stations and shopping malls throughout Saskatoon. We have also helped his father come to Canada to participate in the search operation and asked SABIC to provide information about Hamzah. Hamzah's colleagues have spoken highly of the student who was known for his hard work and perseverance. They reiterated that they noticed nothing suspicious about the student since they first met him three years ago. Hamzah's sister Layla Al-Shareef, who studies in Waterloo city, confirmed this. She told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that her brother was preoccupied with his third-year examinations and went missing the next day. __
