Fahd Al-Dhibyani Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – One of the three Saudi tourists who escaped from kidnappers in the Kenyan capital described their harrowing experience by telephone Saturday.“They showered us with bullets, crammed us into the back of our car and sped away to an unknown destination," said Dr. Majed Khattab told Okaz/Saudi Gazette from Nairobi. “I went with two of my friends, Atif Ismail and Adel Muhammad Ibrahim, on a sight-seeing trip in the suburbs of Nairobi. After midnight, our driver was taking us back to the hotel at the entrance to the city. Suddenly we noticed another car pursuing us. Realizing the danger our driver pressed the accelerator and ignored calls to pull up, but the other car continued the chase," said Khattab. “Suddenly we were surprised by bullets raining on us. At this point, our driver had no choice but to stop. We realized that we were in deep trouble. Our driver surrendered to the kidnappers. We, too, got down and stood on the otherwise deserted road," Khattab said. “Four heavily armed men, who were wearing masks, got down from the car that was pursuing us. They pointed their pistols at us and forced us into the back seat of our car. Two of the gunmen got into the front seats and drove off with one of them pointing the gun toward us. The other two followed us in their car. After driving for some time, they pulled over on the deserted road. We tried to negotiate with them after they took all out money. They also tried to grab our passports," Khattab added. “At this point, one of my friends ran away to a forested area nearby. Two of the masked men followed him in an attempt to catch him while others started firing at us. Taking advantage of the confusion, two of us jumped into the car and sped toward the hotel," he said. The gunmen continued firing at them. The third Saudi who escaped to the forest returned to the hotel some time later. Two of the Saudis were wounded in the firing; one of them was hit in the pelvis and the other in the thigh. The Saudi embassy was informed about the attack and embassy officials made arrangements to take the wounded Saudis to Aga Khan Hospital. Khattab said embassy personnel were on standby at the hospital. They arranged air tickets for the victims to return home immediately. They were due in Jeddah late Saturday.
