The grandmother of two children at the centre of an attempted recovery effort that saw a crew from Channel Nine's 60 Minutes detained in Lebanon says she was assaulted as an armed man grabbed her grandchildren.

Key points: Father Ali el-Amien says incident could have ended with someone getting shot

Father Ali el-Amien says incident could have ended with someone getting shot He says wife Sally Faulkner took children to Australia in 2013 and tore up their passports

He says wife Sally Faulkner took children to Australia in 2013 and tore up their passports 60 Minutes crew, Ms Faulkner, as well as two Britons and two Lebanese citizens detained in Beirut

Their Australian mother, Sally Faulkner, the Nine crew, as well as two British and two Lebanese citizens, are being detained in Lebanon over the incident.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said they had visited the Australians in detention.

"DFAT is in close contact with Channel 9 about the detention of an Australian TV crew in Lebanon. Officials of the Australian Embassy in Beirut are continuing to visit the Australians in detention to confirm their welfare and are providing consular assistance," the spokesperson said.

Lebanese police are investigating what they are calling an attempt by the mother and a recovery agency to abduct her children and take them back to Australia.

The incident was caught on CCTV and footage shows the two children accompanied by their grandmother and a nanny, walking along a Beirut street.

An SUV pulls up, men get out, grab the children and bundle them into the car as a woman presumed to be their grandmother, Ibtissam Berri, is shoved aside.

Sorry, this video has expired Father of children, Lebanese authorities express anger at attempted abduction

Ms Berri said one member of the group hit her with his gun while another man filmed the confrontation.

"A Honda car drew my attention and a big TV camera was being carried by a man filming us. Faster than lightning two men came out," she said.

"One hit me with his pistol on my head and I fainted and there were bruises on my body."

The team made a clean getaway, but was caught not long after the fact.

Soon after, the boy and girl were returned to the father and Ms Faulkner was arrested.

Authorities are investigating whether the Nine crew was involved in taking the children.

The boy and girl were returned to their father after the abduction. ( Supplied: Nine )

Abduction attempt could have ended tragically, father says

The children's father, Ali el-Amien, said it was a reckless and dangerous act.

"I was surprised [that] any one could endanger the children like that," he told the ABC.

"What if someone armed passed by and saw the scene and started to fire? We are in Lebanon here. If they started to shoot, they could have hit one of the children. They could have shot my mother."

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Mr el-Amien said the family had been living in Lebanon until 2013, when Ms Faulkner decided it was no longer safe and took their children to Australia.

"When all the bombings took place, she wanted to go and visit her parents. She arrived there and tore up the children's passports," he said.

"She told me 'when you want to see them, you come to Australia'. I tried to live there more than once but all our revenue came from Lebanon and not from Australia. We were both out of work [in Australia]."

Ms Faulkner said Mr el-Amien took their children to Lebanon on a holiday last year but refused to let them return to Australia, leading to her attempted abduction alongside the 60 Minutes team.

Australia's ambassador has held talks with officials over the dispute.