Stranded Murray Bridge man allowed to return home
A South Australian man – whose son was nominated for a citizen of the year award – has won help from the Australian government after being caught up in a legal dispute in Saudi Arabia.
A Murray Bridge resident stranded in Saudi Arabia for the past three months has been allowed to return home to his family.
Abdullah Balhaddad has been marooned in the Middle Eastern country since May, when a court issued a travel ban against him following a legal dispute.
His initial appeals to both the Saudi and Australian governments were fruitless.
In desperation, he reached out to InDaily and Murray Bridge News where his story was published in July.
Over the weekend, Balhaddad emailed to advise that the extra attention had prompted the Department of Foreign Affairs to raise his case with the Saudi government.
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“Immediately after the Australian embassy contacted the Saudi government, the Saudi government lifted the travel ban and cancelled the remaining court orders,” he said.
“Without your involvement, nobody would know about my case. I am grateful for your help.”
Balhaddad had been visiting Saudi Arabia for the purpose of investing in real estate.
His family has lived in Murray Bridge for a number of years, and his son Said was recognised at a civic reception at Government House this month after being nominated for the city’s young citizen of the year award in January.
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The dispute stemmed from Balhaddad buying a residential unit in Al Khobar, a city on the Persian Gulf, as an investment.
To protect that investment, he installed three security cameras but a neighbour took him to court, arguing that the second and third cameras infringed upon her privacy.
The court found in her favour, so Balhaddad agreed to remove the two cameras.
But an inspector allegedly found one was still there, which led a higher court to order enforcement action against him.
On May 4, while he was out of the country, the Dammam Enforcement Court froze his business assets, revoked his work permit, ordered that he be fined 1000 riyals – about $380 – per day until the camera was removed, and banned him from leaving Saudia Arabia.
At the time, Balhaddad said he had no way of proving compliance with the court order – it was his word against the complainant’s.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade currently advises Australians to exercise a high degree of caution when travelling to Saudi Arabia due to the unpredictable security situation there, including threats of international conflict and terrorism.
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