Belfast mum fears her son could be 'killed' as last ditch attempt to get him out of Beruit failed

Catherine Flanagan can only hope her son David is safe 3,000 miles away in Beruit.

British Nationals in Lebanon are being told to get out while you can.

The first UK humanitarian evacuation flight landed back in Birmingham on Wednesday evening.

But one person was who should have been on it, wasn't on the passenger list.

"I can't believe even to this moment his father would keep him in Beruit when there is a chance for him to get out. David could be killed in Lebanon," Catherine told UTV

Mustaphe Nahle, David's father, a Lebanese doctor, is refusing to hand him back to his mum despite a High Court ruling in Belfast that he must.

Catherine's ex husband is breaking UK law by keeping him there.

Miceál O'Hurley has been acting a mediator in this ongoing custody battle and spoke to UTV from Athens after attempting to get into Beruit.

"The Foreign Office had arranged a humanitarian evacuation flight," he said.

"Catherine and I worked very quickly to not only obtain a priority space for David but for myself because we wanted to make it possible for David to be sent to a place of safety ... unfortunately we missed a huge opportunity."

Hundreds of British troops have been deployed to Cyprus in preparation for evacuation.

There are real fears that further military action by Israel could force the closure of Beruit airport, cutting off those like David.

"Nobody can guarentee a child's safety in a war zone. Right now the number one priority is getting a two year old child who is about to turn three next week in a warzone to safety," Mr O'Hurley added.

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