In March, President Obama, who is himself a parent, will travel to Saudi Arabia to meet with the Saudi King. Please help me make our president aware of my situation; ignoring the rights of a custodial mother is unacceptable in today's global and multicultural world. Your support will help raise awareness about international parental child kidnapping, its ramifications, and the need for more cooperation and support surrounding these issues between governments.

My name is Jessica and I am a U.S. Citizen. Twelve weeks ago my children were taken from me by their father, Majed Sayed, a Saudi national. In direct violation of our custody agreement he flew with them to Saudi Arabia – a country whose laws do not specifically protect the rights of a mother to her children or her children’s right to have their mother. In order to kidnap them he filed a false police report so that he could obtain replacement passports for our sons, and presented falsified information to his U.S. lawyer and a Saudi Arabian court about our relationship and custody agreement.

My husband and I are not legally divorced in Saudi Arabia, and because of this I cannot travel there without being legally beholden to him – he would still be considered my legal guardian, and as such would be able to prevent me from traveling, working, or even seeking medical attention. For the last 3 months I have tried to find a way to visit my children and eventually bring them back home. As of today, I still have no word from the Saudi consulate about a way for me to travel there to see them safely. As of today, my own government has still not provided any concrete assistance to pressure the Saudi government to help me. As of today, their father still refuses to acknowledge my basic human rights as their mother and also my Islamic right to have a mediator in domestic disputes.

Is my pain, my children's pain, not important enough? Is international parental child abduction not a big enough crime? Is depriving children of a loving mother inconsequential?