BURAIDAH, 26 June 2006 — The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) is investigating the case of an aged Saudi man who went missing about six weeks ago in suspicious circumstances from a village in the Qasim region, Al-Watan daily reported yesterday.

The man, who has three wives, was involved in a bitter dispute with his three sons from the first wife, according to a complaint filed by the man’s two young daughters.

Nine-year-old Hessa and seven-year-old Emani, the man’s daughters from his third wife, requested the NSHR to investigate their father’s disappearance following a number of threats made by their half brothers.

In their complaint, the two girls said that the three brothers would physically harm their mother, accusing her of seducing their father and marrying him in order to steal his wealth.

The day their father disappeared, the woman had contacted the police after her stepsons had brutalized her, the girls said. The old man did not return home from his farm that day, as was his habit each evening.

According to an Indian guard at the farm, the old man was forcibly driven away by his three sons. The guard said the old man was crying for help as he was taken away.

When the aged man did not return home, his young wife went looking for him and found her husband’s car in the farm. The guard told the woman what he had seen.

When confronted by the woman, the sons told her that their aged father was seriously ill and could not to see or meet anyone in that condition.

The woman then called the police and asked them to ensure the safety of her old husband. She also requested them to give protection to her daughters.

According to the NSHR, a court had previously rejected the sons’ plea to declare the old man mentally incompetent and put him under their protection.

“The society has sought more information from related official agencies and it expects to get a reply shortly,” Moflih Al-Qahtani, a spokesman from the NSHR, said.

“If there are evidences to establish the charges, severe action will be taken against the culprits,” Al-Qahtani added.