Naharnet

Hariri Acts after Lebanese Workers Brutally Beaten in Kazakhstan

Prime Minister Saad Hariri has asked High Relief Commission chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Kheir to intervene after a number of Lebanese workers in Kazakhstan were brutally beaten over an “Instagram picture.”

A statement issued by Hariri’s office said the premier asked Kheir to carry out the necessary contacts to facilitate the return of the workers to Lebanon.

“Maj. Gen. Kheir immediately conducted a series of phone calls that involved the Kazakh authorities and the officials of the company and the Lebanese community, inquiring about the situations of the company’s Lebanese employees and workers,” the office said.

“He was informed by them that the clash was contained and that efforts were underway to put an end to its repercussions,” Hariri’s office added.

Lebanese Ambassador to Kazakhstan Giscard Khoury meanwhile said an Instagram picture showing a Lebanese worker and a female Kazakh colleague was behind the assault, noting that “there could be other reasons but certainly they are not related to the reports about a sex tape.”

“We contacted the Kazakh Foreign Ministry and the security departments and we received reassurances that they are carrying out efforts to ensure the safety of the Lebanese,” Khoury said in a TV interview, adding that the Lebanese citizens were present at a police station for safety reasons ahead of possible deportation.

“The authorities have formed a panel of inquiry,” he said.

Videos that went viral on social media show Lebanese and Arab workers being brutally beaten at the hands of Kazakh colleagues. Other videos show evacuation buses being pelted with stones.

The picture, in which Lebanese worker Elie Daoud appears in a jokingly suggestive pose with a female Kazakh colleague, was deemed insulting to Kazakh women and the country as a whole.

Daoud later recorded a video in which he apologized to the Kazakh people and president.

Source: Naharnet


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