Wedding Present? American Overpowers His Lebanese Kidnapers, Escapes

WASHINGTON â€”  A U.S. citizen, victim of a wedding-day kidnaping in northeastern Lebanon, overpowered his captors and fled to safety, ending up at the U.S. Embassy in Syria, State Department officials said Monday.

Kenneth Wells, who works in Saudi Arabia for Litton Industries, was kidnaped Sunday by armed men in Baalbek, northeast of Beirut, as he was leaving his wedding reception with his Lebanese bride, officials said.

The woman was detained briefly and released. Several hours later, Wells subdued his abductors and escaped to a Syrian checkpoint, from which he was escorted to Damascus and turned over to a U.S. Embassy official, the officials said.

No hometown for Wells was given, although his mother reportedly lives in Tennessee. According to one published report, Wells is 25 and his wife, Samia, is 32. He is said to hold a black belt in karate.

Witnesses in Damascus said the American, who refused to speak to reporters, was still wearing his black wedding suit. His tie was awry and his neck bore scratch marks.

He was accompanied by his bride, who was dressed in blue jeans and a denim jacket and looked pale. Both were driven away in an embassy car.

The Voice of Lebanon, which is run by right-wing Christian militias, broadcast an account of the kidnaping similar to the State Department’s.

In Damascus, a source close to the Syrian Foreign Ministry confirmed the outlines of the report but said Wells was rescued by Syrian troops who found out where he was being held and overwhelmed the kidnapers.

State Department spokesman Charles Redman expressed gratitude to Syrian authorities for their assistance.

There was no indication of the identity of the kidnapers, but Baalbek is a headquarters of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, or Party of God, a Shia Muslim organization believed responsible for the abduction of many foreigners in Lebanon. Shia extremist groups, all thought to be linked, are believed to hold nine Americans.