<p>Farzana Ahmed, 32, from Stockton-on-Tees had travelled to Pakistan after suffering difficulties in her marriage and expected her husband to join her. But he failed to do so.<br />Instead, she was kept locked inside the home of her husband's family in the city of Mirpur with her children, aged two, four, eight and 12, The Daily Telegraph reported.<br /><br />She claimed she was told her children would be killed if she tried to escape. Armed officers arrived at the house with a court order yesterday demanding she be allowed to return to Britain.<br /><br />"After a month they started hitting me and swearing and telling me they wouldn't let me go home," Ahmed said.<br /><br />"I'm safe now. I'm left with a real scared feeling. I can't walk past the window and I don't want to let go of my children."<br /><br />Abdul Hamid, a senior officer in Mirpur, said the woman had been treated like a "slave", doing menial household chores.<br /><br />"She was miserable. She was not allowed to leave the house or do the normal activities, so she wrote a secret letter to her brother in the UK for help," he said.<br /><br />Armed officers arrived at the house with a court order demanding she be allowed to return to Britain.<br /><br />"Now she is free," Hamid. "She is feeling better and is safe with we now just have to recover her documents and get her home."<br /><br />Pakistan has a huge problem with kidnappings. Thousands of people are snatched every year for ransom by criminal gangs. Others are held against their will when arranged marriages break down.<br /><br />Wealthy British Pakistanis, who hold dual nationality and travel back and forth between the two countries are a particular target.<br /><br />Mirpur is often known as "little Britain". Shops advertise prices in sterling and Manchester accents are commonplace.<br /><br />A spokesman for the British High Commission in Islamabad said consular staff were ready to help if needed.<br /><br />"We are aware of the case and the local authorities are assisting the family," he said.<br />Earlier this year a five-year-old British Boy, Sahil Saeed, from Oldham, was held for two weeks until his family raised a 110,000 pounds ransom.<br /><br /></p>
<p>Farzana Ahmed, 32, from Stockton-on-Tees had travelled to Pakistan after suffering difficulties in her marriage and expected her husband to join her. But he failed to do so.<br />Instead, she was kept locked inside the home of her husband's family in the city of Mirpur with her children, aged two, four, eight and 12, The Daily Telegraph reported.<br /><br />She claimed she was told her children would be killed if she tried to escape. Armed officers arrived at the house with a court order yesterday demanding she be allowed to return to Britain.<br /><br />"After a month they started hitting me and swearing and telling me they wouldn't let me go home," Ahmed said.<br /><br />"I'm safe now. I'm left with a real scared feeling. I can't walk past the window and I don't want to let go of my children."<br /><br />Abdul Hamid, a senior officer in Mirpur, said the woman had been treated like a "slave", doing menial household chores.<br /><br />"She was miserable. She was not allowed to leave the house or do the normal activities, so she wrote a secret letter to her brother in the UK for help," he said.<br /><br />Armed officers arrived at the house with a court order demanding she be allowed to return to Britain.<br /><br />"Now she is free," Hamid. "She is feeling better and is safe with we now just have to recover her documents and get her home."<br /><br />Pakistan has a huge problem with kidnappings. Thousands of people are snatched every year for ransom by criminal gangs. Others are held against their will when arranged marriages break down.<br /><br />Wealthy British Pakistanis, who hold dual nationality and travel back and forth between the two countries are a particular target.<br /><br />Mirpur is often known as "little Britain". Shops advertise prices in sterling and Manchester accents are commonplace.<br /><br />A spokesman for the British High Commission in Islamabad said consular staff were ready to help if needed.<br /><br />"We are aware of the case and the local authorities are assisting the family," he said.<br />Earlier this year a five-year-old British Boy, Sahil Saeed, from Oldham, was held for two weeks until his family raised a 110,000 pounds ransom.<br /><br /></p>