Missing children may be in Lebanon
Two young children who have been missing for two weeks may now be in Lebanon, it emerged tonight.
Mohamed Rami Hassan, aged one, and his brother Ali Alexsandra Hassan, aged two, both disappeared from their house in Swords in Dublin, along with their Lebanese-born father.
The two children, who had been the subject of District Court proceedings, have not been seen by their mother since.
Gardaí originally believed they were staying with a family in the Clonskeagh area but now have shifted their focus abroad.
“We are not 100% sure but we believe they may be in Lebanon,” said a Garda spokesman.
Last September, the gardaí launched a missing kids website to help trace children who were taken out of the country. It currently lists eight boys and six girls who went missing in the past 12 months.
This includes two-year-old Michael Doyle, who went missing from his home in Tullow in Carlow last July. According to the site, he may be in Britain, travelling in a dark coloured van.
Andreea-Majella Acatrinei, aged two, disappeared from her accommodation in Smithfield, Dublin last month. She is believed to be in Romania with her 37-year-old father.
Under the Non-fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997, it is illegal for one parent to take a child out of the country without the consent of the other parent or in defiance of a court order.
The penalties include up to seven years imprisonment.
Anyone with information on Mohamed Rami Hassan and Ali Alexsandra Hassan is asked to contact gardaí at Swords.
