Missing boys removed illegally from State to Lebanon - Garda

Two baby boys missing from their home in Swords, Co Dublin, for almost a month have been removed illegally from the State, gardaí have said.

Two-year-old Ali Alexsandra Hassan and his one-year-old brother, Mohamed Rami Hassan, who are the subject of proceedings in the Dublin District Court, were last seen by their mother, Ms Baiba Saulite, who is a foreign national, in early December, before they and their father disappeared from their Swords home.

The boys' father, a Lebanese national, Mr Hassan Hassan, was ordered by the District Court on December 14th last, to produce his children in court by Christmas Eve. He failed to do so and was remanded in Clover Hill prison.

Mr Hassan claimed he had sent his infant sons to Lebanon with relatives. But he could not provide proof of this in court and gardaí believed at that stage the children were still in Dublin, possibly staying with a family in the Clonskeagh area.

Gardaí yesterday established the children had been taken from the State. "We have been able to confirm that the children are in a foreign country. We believe they are safe and well and are being looked by relatives," said a Garda spokeswoman.

Gardaí cannot reveal the children's location, but it is understood they were taken to Lebanon, on the direction of their father. Mr Hassan, who spent Christmas in prison, appeared in court on Tuesday and was remanded in custody for a further week, with an order to produce his children in court on January 11th.

The gardaí do not believe the children are in physical danger, but say it is imperative they be returned to the State immediately. "Legally they have to be brought back," the Garda spokeswoman said.

It is understood the boys hold Irish and Lebanese passports.