London family’s nine-year nightmare after businessman ‘abducted and tortured’ in Saudi ArabiaMother-of-three Mira Lozi breaks her silence after nine years to campaign for the return of her husband Rami Nami
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Megan Howe, News Reporter1 minute ago
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A mother-of-three from London has spoken for the first time about the “living nightmare” her family has endured for almost a decade after her husband was allegedly abducted by Saudi authorities.
Rami Naimi was returning from accompanying his elderly father, former Saudi oil minister Ali Al Naimi, on a book tour in Australia when his family claim he was abducted in Dubai in 2017.
His alleged abduction came at the same time as a sweeping roundup of Saudi political, royal and business figures in November that year, carried out under the banner of an anti-corruption purge.
Orchestrated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) through a newly formed anti-graft committee, the operation resulted in the detention of roughly 381 people, with Riyadh’s luxury Ritz-Carlton hotel turned into a high-security detention facility.
The crackdown preceded the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, by agents of the Saudi government.
Mr Naimi, an international businessman, was allegedly taken to Saudi Arabia and initially detained at the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh, where his family says he was tortured.
Rami Al Naimi has been in Saudi Arabia since 2017Supplied
His family claim he was subjected to electrocution, waterboarding and psychological abuse, and has since suffered physical and mental after-effects from his treatment.
Mr Naimi was reportedly released in January 2018 but placed under electronic surveillance and banned from leaving Saudi Arabia. He moved in with his elderly mother and father.
His family says he was also forced to sign a document pledging to hand over five billion Saudi Riyals, later “discounted” to one billion – money they say neither he nor his family possesses.
In September 2022, Mr Naimi reportedly disappeared again for nearly two years, during which time his family says he was subjected to further torture. His relatives did not know whether he was alive or dead.
He was later located in Al Ha’ir Prison and was eventually released with an electronic tag and made subject to a travel ban in March 2025, his family cIaim.
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Mr Naimi’s wife, Mira Lozi, who has been diagnosed with cancer and has seen her husband only a handful of times since 2017, says she is “broken” without him and is speaking publicly now out of “despair”.
Rami pictured with his family in 2016 before his abductionBring Rami Home
It is understood the family had previously been advised to keep the case out of the public eye in an attempt to maximise the chances of securing Mr Naimi’s freedom through private and diplomatic channels.
But after nine years without a resolution, Mrs Lozi is now seeking public support for a campaign to “Bring Rami Home”.
“I am acting out of total despair,” she said. “Without Rami our family is totally broken. I am broken – physically and mentally.”
“Rami is not a journalist or activist, he’s not one of the Saudi elite and was very surprised to find himself in the same vicinity as others who were rounded up.
“He’s a regular businessman and a father of three who was abducted for no reason, in another country, and then forced onto a private jet to Saudi and then disappeared and tortured.”
Mrs Lozi said she had spent nine years in a “living nightmare” with no end in sight, claiming the Saudi authorities were “hell bent” on destroying her family.
She questioned whether her husband had been targeted “simply because his father is a former Saudi oil minister and head of Aramco.”
“No family should endure this separation, and no innocent person should face abduction, torture and extortion of their life savings by a country which is trying to persuade the world that it’s a safe, relaxed, luxurious place to visit for Westerners,” she added.
Rami with his wife Mira pictured in February 2017, just months before his abductionBring Rami Home
Following his release from Al Ha’ir Prison, Mr Naimi reportedly learned of a charge against him alleging that he had “exploited” his father’s official influence – an allegation his family says is false.
It was alleged that, while acting as an agent for a US company in Saudi Arabia, he helped the company secure a contract through tender to provide Aramco with technology designed to prevent diesel smuggling – an issue his father, while serving as oil minister, had encouraged Aramco to address as soon as possible.
According to his family, Mr Naimi was sentenced to six years in prison following what his family describes as a secret trial.
His family says he is now facing further charges over allegations that he followed social media accounts critical of Saudi Arabia, which they also reject as false.
“We really wanted to believe in the Saudi judicial system. But that seems a total sham. He has been through what can only be described as a living hell. We have been through a living nightmare,” Mrs Lozi added.
“Our children haven’t been able to see their father properly in more than eight years. They have only been able to speak to him on monitored video calls for much of that time.
“Our eldest son is now 21 and half his life has been entirely without his father. I miss my husband terribly, we all miss him. He has missed every important date in our lives since he was taken.
“My daughter, Noor’s wedding, both my son Ali and my daughter Saria’s graduations … and the list goes on.”
Mrs Lozi was able to visit her husband following his initial release from the Ritz-Carlton, but says she is now too frightened to return.
The family fears relatives could themselves be detained if they travel to Saudi Arabia or the UAE and, together with their legal team, now want to warn other families about what they say are the risks of travelling there.
Rami pictured with his wife MiraBring Rami Home
Lead Counsel Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC said: “Saudi Arabia is not a safe place to visit, but in this case Rami Naimi wasn’t even visiting. He was abducted in another Gulf state – and then persecuted and tortured, perhaps simply for being the son of a former oil executive.
“He has been subjected to the most horrific, inhumane and unacceptable torture, he has injuries to prove the attacks by the Saudi state, and we want the world to see what is happening in the Kingdom under MBS, where proxy persecution – targeting family members or friends of those the state wishes to attack – is just one of the methods employed.”
As a businessman, Mr Naimi, who left Saudi Arabia at age 13 and was educated in the United States, had travelled internationally for business between the UK, US and Middle East for decades.
His family claim he may have been targeted due to his father’s former prominent position in Saudi Arabia, despite having no political involvement himself.
A Bedouin, Mr Naimi’s father published his memoirs – Out of the Desert – in 2016 which gives some insight into domestic power, politics and oil in Saudi Arabia. In his 90s, he is now seriously ill and bed-bound.
While Mr Naimi’s case has been handled through diplomatic channels, with support from international officials and British MPs, he remains detained in Saudi, his family say, under threat of further lengthy imprisonment, and unable to return home.
However, with Mr Naimi now allegedly facing trial, his family have decided to go public.
Mrs Lozi added: “We’ve tried quiet diplomacy for years, but it has failed. We realise that by going public, Rami could be put at further risk.
“We haven’t been able to discuss our campaign with him but without going public, we may never see him again face to face. He is an innocent man, and he needs to be brought home to safety. He deserves to be with his family after all this time.
“We now urge the British government, MPs, the European Union, the United Nations, and the world to see what is happening and to take action to help free Rami. The Saudi state cannot be allowed to abduct and torture innocent people while international celebrities and comedians and sportspeople all encourage the rest of us to visit the mega-wealthy Kingdom.”
“Saudi should be seen as a pariah state, not a holiday destination. It is too dangerous to visit the Kingdom, we would say ‘stay away’ at all costs because you might be next.”
Saudi authorities have been approached for comment by The Standard
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