Tampa mother in Washington to plead for son's return from Lebanon

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Rachelle Smith is on a mother’s mission to get her son back.

She is flying to Washington D.C. to meet with Senators Marco Rubio and Bill Nelson,

“I'm going to be asking the Senators to use every tool provided to them to help and assist with the return of my son Dexter, " said Rachelle.

Rachelle's son, Dexter Salamey was kidnapped and taken to Lebanon a month ago.

Rachelle was locked in a contentious custody battle with Dexter's father, Ali Salamey

But instead of having the courts settle it, Salamey took matters into his own hands and snatched his son and took him to the Middle East.

Because the U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with Lebanon, little can be done to force Salamey back to the United States with Dexter.

Cell phone video was sent to Rachelle days after Dexter was taken, showing the four-year-old looking happy and playing on a scooter.

"Dexter means the world to me. He is the love of my life. He means everything to me," said Rachelle.

Rachelle's attorney, Patrick Leduc blamed the state of Lebanon for being complicit in the kidnapping,

"They obtained a Lebanese passport for the child and himself without the mother's consent, in violation of our laws," said LeDuc.

Rachelle has already missed Dexter’s 4th birthday and says she can’t afford to miss anymore.

"Dexter, if you are watching us, I want you to know that mommy loves you so much and I will not stop until you get home and I'm fighting for you every single day," said Rachelle.