Kenyan Women Held Hostage in the Middle East Cry Out for Help

Two Kenyan women allegedly held hostage in Lebanon after they lost their jobs in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic are crying out for help. 

In a video shared by Daily Nation on Sunday, the two ladies claim they were locked in a house by their agent together with other women of different nationalities.

One of the two Kenyan women says those locked in the house receive only one meal per day and they are asked to part with huge amounts of money when they demand to return home.

"Due to Corona, there are no jobs, when we ask them to take us to work, they claim that there are no openings. When we asked them to take us home if there are no jobs, they demand us to give them money. They want us to pay Ksh100,000.”

"The food we receive only comes for a day. For example, when you are given a slice of sandwich, that is breakfast, lunch, and supper for that day. We are many girls here and the food is not enough," she adds.

She further notes that there are many Kenyans in Lebanon who were rendered jobless by the pandemic and are presently living in the streets. 

"We have colleagues who were thrown into the streets and have no help. They have phones but lack the internet and there is no way they can get to us," she quips.

The second woman reveals that she was destined for Qatar when she left Kenya in 2019 but she found herself in Lebanon, where she first worked for a harsh employer before being transferred to another agency.

"After I complained, they sent me to another employer and they kept my money claiming that if I did not send the money home, I should let them keep it for me," she says.

Barely three months into her new job, ugly protests broke out in the Middle East nation, and by the time the situation normalized, the Covid-19 pandemic set in.