YANBU, 11 August 2006 — An intense search operation has been launched to find a man who mysteriously disappeared last Tuesday after leaving work at a grocery shop in the Al-Osaily neighborhood of Yanbu, reported the Al-Madinah newspaper.

Indian national Younis Suleiman, 35, was reported missing by his wife after he failed to arrive home on Tuesday. Suleiman’s brother, who unsuccessfully searched for him at police stations and hospitals in Yanbu, said that his brother, who works as a cashier in a shop, was carrying SR500 when he went missing. The brother added that his brother did not suffer from any sort of mental illnesses. “I’ve tried ringing his mobile phone but it is shut. My brother always leaves his mobile phone on and he never turns it off. We as a family are facing a difficult time trying to search for him. His wife and children are already going through a tough time,” said the brother.

Ahmed, an Egyptian baker who works at the grocery shop where Suleiman works, said he saw the Indian national on Tuesday when he gave him some money to buy some flour.

“I took the money from Suleiman to bring what he asked for. My son was with me at the time and he was crying. I took him back home and went to buy the stuff he asked for at around 8 a.m. When I returned I was surprised that the shop was still closed. I telephoned him but his phone was off. I called the sponsor and told him that the store was closed and that there was no trace of Suleiman,” said Ahmed.

Ahmed added that he thinks that Suleiman has disappeared because he owes other workers at the grocery shop a lot of money. “He borrowed SR4,000 from an Indian worker and still has not repaid him yet. Suleiman even had a fight with the man after he failed to pay him on time,” said Ahmed. He also mentioned that Suleiman owed a Yemeni worker another substantial amount of money.

Inmate Escapes

An inmate of the Social Protection Home ran away from the Riyadh Central Hospital yesterday. The 25-year-old woman was being treated for depression at the hospital following her recent attempt to commit suicide. She had said she attempted to kill herself because she did not want to go back to her home after being discharged from hospital. She said she was abused at home, Al-Watan reported yesterday.