A Heswall mother has not seen or spoken to her son for four years after it is believed her ex-husband abducted him and fled the country. Raneem Elkhalidi has spent the last four years waiting to see and hear from her son Ibrahim, who is believed to be in Saudi Arabia.
Ibrahim was just six years old when his mum last laid eyes on him, dropping him off at his school in Cheshire on Friday, November 11, 2022. He was due to be picked up by his dad that day before staying at his home as part of the arrangement the parents had at the time. It wasn't until she received a phone call from his school on Monday, November 14, to ask why he wasn't there that she realised he had been taken.
A Mother's Heartbreak
Raneem explained how she wasn't able to kiss her son the last time she saw him as he ran off to play with his friends, before she went to tell his teacher it would be his dad picking him up that day. The now-28-year-old said she had a gut feeling her ex-husband, Hamzah Faraj, had taken their son and fled the UK, heading to his home country in the Middle East despite court documents, seen by the ECHO, stating he was not to do so without Raneem's permission.
Raneem, who has lived in Heswall for the last three years, spoke about the impact of having her son taken away from her. She said: "It's really hard, I go to sleep, I think about him and I still dream about him but when I dream about him all I see is a little boy with long hair."
"I see him as a five-year-old, I can't see what he is like now. Sometimes I have horrible dreams that he is hungry, no one feeds him and I am begging to see him. It's heartbreaking, I cry when I wake up."
"I was trying as much as possible to be as normal as I can just for him, stay strong, I don't want him, when he comes back, to see a broken mum. I am trying my best to be strong and be happy."
"But it is just horrible, I just have to keep going, I am trying my best to show I still love him, I'm still trying and I am not going to give up on him. It was not my choice what happened, it is something I cannot control."
Court Order Breached
Cheshire Police confirmed Mr Faraj remains wanted by the force. Raneem has been unable to contact her ex since he disappeared with their son. The dog walker has tried to contact Mr Faraj but he immediately blocked her number and she has been unable to speak to his family members.
The ECHO reported in 2023 how court documents from the High Court of Justice Family Division state: "Ibrahim was wrongfully removed from England to Saudi Arabia by his father in the midst of court proceedings without the knowledge or consent of his mother or the permission of the court."
"The father was present in court (and legally represented) when a prohibited steps order was made by the family court preventing him from taking the child abroad on November 3 but he breached this order only nine days later."
The UK does not have an extradition treaty with Saudi Arabia, meaning there is no obligation to help retrieve Ibrahim from Mr Faraj.
Call for Legal Change
Raneem said: "I tried to communicate with my ex, I tried to call him, but he blocked me on everything, so I couldn't reach him or my son. I just want to know he is safe, especially with everything that is going on in the Middle East."
"The area where Ibrahim is, the Foreign Office says not to travel there because it is not safe. I'm terrified not knowing whether he is safe. It's really hard."
Raneem met her ex when she was 16, with the couple undergoing an arranged marriage in Saudi Arabia. They moved to England in 2014, where Ibrahim was born. She said their relationship began to deteriorate after they moved to England and the marriage broke down completely in June 2021. Just a week after the phone call to say Ibrahim did not attend school, Raneem received formal confirmation she and Mr Faraj were divorced.
Describing her son in an emotional interview with the ECHO, Raneem couldn't help but smile as she explained his love for animals and their pets. Raneem said: "I'm a dog walker because Ibrahim loves animals and he used to have a rabbit called Beano, a cat called Nala and we have two dogs as well, Axel and Theo. He loves animals so much, he used to play with Beano in the garden and he would chase Beano."
"So, I just thought I want to do something that he would love that can take myself out, so I became a dog walker."
Following Ibrahim's abduction, his friends from school wrote letters to the King in July 2023. One of his friends wrote: "I am writing to ask for your help please. My friend Ibrahim has been missing since November. I miss him way too much. He has missed out Christmas play, residential [trip] and another trip! I know his mum misses him too and I am worried he will be sad not seeing his mum and friends."
Raneem explained she has been supported by the community in Heswall since moving to Wirral, but she is now set on bringing in stricter legislation which would make it harder for children to leave the country without permission from both parents. She said: "I'm trying to change the law so this doesn't happen to anyone else. I don't want this to happen to another family. There was a court order so why was there no communication with the airport, for example? I have had other women contact me in the same situation."
Wirral West MP Matthew Patrick said: "Raneem's story is heartbreaking. She should have been able to have confidence that an order from a family court would have prevented her son's abduction. As we now know, it wasn't worth the paper it was written on."
"I fully support Raneem in her efforts to secure Ibrahim's return. I have already spoken directly to the Prime Minister on the issue and will do all I can in Parliament to secure this long-overdue outcome."
"I am also making the case to Government that we need longer-term action to address the wider issues that Raneem's case highlights. Earlier this week I questioned the Ministry of Justice on those issues and will continue to argue for the necessary changes to be made so that other parents do not have to experience Raneem's ordeal."
