Sarah defies Saudi thugs, won't leave without kids!

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Friday, June 20, 2003 | Pat Roush

[JohnHuang2]

On the eve of her 24th birthday, Sarah Saga, the courageous, young woman who has sought sanctuary inside the U.S. Consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the past five days, was brought face-to-face with members of the Saudi government inside her living quarters. She was not given the choice of refusing these uninvited guests, but told by U.S. consular officers that she must comply with Saudi demands for a meeting.

As Sarah and her two young children huddled in a corner of the room, three Saudi men from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs approached her. She had grown up in a household with an abusive Saudi father who had beaten her on a regular basis, threatened her with a knife, and locked her up in a room for two years as revealed to me in an audiotaped interview a few weeks ago. Now, her worst nightmare was coming true – Saudi men again intimating her and scaring her right inside the U.S. Consulate and in her own bedroom.

One of them said, "Let us tell you what your problem is – but your option is only one." The nervous, frightened woman signed the document placed before her and then the men left. The arrangements had been made. Sarah was to be placed on a commercial airliner at 2 a.m. this morning and her children were to be given to relatives. The Saudis wanted to end this "hostage situation" and get back to their PR campaign in the U.S.

But Sarah has decided that she won't go. "I will never leave my children here to suffer the same horrible life that I had to endure," she tells a Fox News audience. She has locked herself inside her room and keeps her little ones close by.

A couple of days ago, Sarah told her mom that she had a piece of chocolate cake at the consulate cafeteria. "I told Sarah we'll have a big chocolate cake for her birthday when she comes home. That was her favorite."

Birthdays aren't celebrated in Saudi Arabia. They consider it a Western holiday. When I met my daughters in a hotel room in Riyadh eight years ago, Aisha didn't even know her correct age. I brought Alia a "Sweet Sixteen" birthday card as a present, but she was perplexed by it all.

This will be the first birthday in eighteen years that Sarah Saga will celebrate. Although she may be alone in a room in the U.S. Consulate with danger all around her, she can have her chocolate cake with her kids and we can each light one candle for Sarah and pray for her safe return.

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Fox News has posted addresses of U.S. officials that can be contacted to express support for Saga in her quest for freedom for both herself and her children.

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[FITZ]

The problem is the kids. They are not American citizens.

It's too bad Sarah's mother didn't pay attention to Saudi law and culture before taking her half-Saudi child over there in the first place. The Saudis have just as much claim over Sarah as does the USA since she has a Saudi father. And Sarah's kids also have a Saudi father.

[swarthyguy]

>>They want her children, to keep their bloodlines clean of inbreeding, which is one of the reasons they are always trying to marry Europeans and Westerners.


AGREED! Imagine a thousand years of marrying your first cousins!

[happygrl]

This woman married a Saudi because she was under the authority of her Saudi father in Saudi Arabia. Her mother had married a Saudi and returned with him to his country after her two daughters were born in the US making them American citizens.

The mother left Saudi Arabia years ago after begging the US to help in getting out her daughters who were AMERICAN CITIZENS. Now it is this daughter who is seeking to leave with HER children.

The State Department has been rightly castigated by Newt Gingrich for its slavish obesqueious toadying to the Saudis and the Arab world.

[cinFLA]

There are exceptions, of course, as to whether or not the children acquire US citizenship at birth.

And the exception is that one is not born in the US.

I believe you owe your readers a retraction of your statement that "Of course they are US citizens".

[FITZ]

That American mother made a choice to marry a Saudi citizen, she certainly must have understood there were certain consequences to her future children in doing that. We're not the only country with citizenship laws, the Saudis certainly have a right to decide a Saudi father gives his children his citizenship. Especially when that child is on Saudi soil. Sarah's children were born on Saudi soil, have a Saudi father, and in the eyes of the Saudis, Sarah herself is a Saudi. What right would the USA have in going over and removing those children by force from their country and from their father?

[cinFLA]

I wasn't trying to play semantics, honest. It's one of my least favorite games. :)

No problem. I had posted they weren't US citizens and Ready4Freddy responded that 'Of course they are ..' and you kinda got in the middle of my reaction.

[af_vet_rr]

You must not have gotten the e-mail about how the Saudis are our friends. I know this to be true, the President and others in the government have said this repeatedly.

/sarcasm off

[Ready4Freddy]

"And the exception is that one is not born in the US."

Not true, cinFLA. The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 provides for automatic citizenship of children born to US citizens outside the US and its possessionsif the child and citizen parent meet certain requirements. Don't know if CCA2K applies to her kids, since it's not retroactive.

They may or may not be citizens at this point (would have to know all the details), but they are certainly eligible for US citizenship.

[Ready4Freddy]

I don't think that Sarah's mother took her over to Saudi, the story was / is that the Saudi father took Sarah from the US to Saudi (perhaps illegally).

I do agree with you re: US claims for getting this mother and children back are pretty week. Depends on how much you want to respect other countries' citizenship laws, and what passes for family law in those countries (I was not in favor of giving custody of Elian to any of the US extended family, btw, which probably puts me in the minority here :).

[cinFLA]

Not true, cinFLA.

What is not true.

[cinFLA]

Don't know if CCA2K applies to her kids, since it's not retroactive.

Why don't you just admit you don't know, period.

[cgk]

:) And I forgot to mention (as I often forget to clearly state things that are misinterpreted on this forum), I didn't think YOU were saying I was playing semantics, either. I just wanted you to know I meant nothing by it.

Thanks for the reply.

[Ready4Freddy]

"What is not true."

You're assertion that the children being born outside the US precludes them from having US citizenship.

"Why don't you just admit you don't know, period."

The age of the children will determine if the CCA2K applies to them. The date and length of their mother's last presence in the US or possessions will determine if they have citizenship via CCA2K.

[cgk]

When the Riyadh bombings happened, a FReeper was on the scene from SA - and talked a bit about it. How one of the secrets that country sits on is all the cross-eyed people walking around... results from exactly what you said. Sad sad sad!

[cinFLA]

I just wanted it posted that the wnd was playing loose and fast with their sources. Hard to fight a "US official" and an immigration lawyer at the same time. Freddy is hedging but at least has pulled back from his original statement that they are US citizens.

[cinFLA]

The age of the children will determine if the CCA2K applies to them. The date and length of their mother's last presence in the US or possessions will determine if they have citizenship via CCA2K.

More hedging ......

Can't you just admit that children of a US parent born outside of the US are NOT automatically US citizens?

[cinFLA]

The age of the children will determine if the CCA2K applies to them.

They are under 18. It applies.

[cinFLA]

The age of the children will determine if the CCA2K applies to them. The date and length of their mother's last presence in the US or possessions will determine if they have citizenship via CCA2K

Aren't you leaving out a key requirement?

[CobaltBlue]

>>Don't allow your daughters to date Saudis!<<

Amen, but not just Saudis. Saudi Arabia is the worst but marrying men (or women) from other countries can turn into a nightmare in the event of a divorce.

I have been told by a Muslim woman from Egypt, living in the US, that according to Islam the children are supposed to live with the mother in the event of divorce.

I have no idea whether she is correct, but there certainly is a nationalistic bias going on here. I have heard that Germany is about as bad.

[Ready4Freddy]

I really don't think that the children's citizenship makes much difference here - the Saudis don't really care, they're the father's kids in Saudi eyes, and that's it. I very seriously doubt that they will ever be allowed to leave the country.