Satirical writer Kamel Nseirat was in his car in the Abu Nseir area on Monday when four masked and armed men pulled him out of it and attempted to kidnap him.
The four assailants, dressed like Daesh fighters, handcuffed Nseirat, blindfolded him and started to beat him up and accuse him of blasphemy before threatening to “kill him and blow up his car”.
Then, they forced him to get into a pickup truck with the intention of driving away to an unknown destination.
Once the ruckus started attracting spectators, three police cars showed up and detained everyone involved, despite the fact that they were on a location shoot for an upcoming local satirical series.
“As we were shooting the scene in the street, people started to gather and film us. Then 10 minutes later police cars showed up, asked for our IDs and arrested us,” Nseirat said.
“This scene is in the first episode of a series called Tanfees. The scene depicts a journalist being kidnapped by armed Daesh fighters,” he told The Jordan Times over the phone Tuesday.
Some 14 actors, cameramen and crewmembers were detained; one of the cameramen fled the scene when he saw the police, Nseirat noted.
The actors were carrying toy guns that cost JD1 each, he added.
“We showed our IDs and the permit to film but we were taken to a nearby police station. After officers at the station understood it was simply make-believe, they laughed, offered us tea and coffee, were very nice to us and asked us to go back and continue filming,” the journalist said.
“This shows that the police and security authorities in our country are vigilant and very attentive and take everything seriously. I want to thank all security forces working to preserve the stability and safety of the Kingdom,” Nseirat added.
