Ali Boureslan, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Lebanese descent, was employed by the Arabian American Oil Co. (Aramco) as a cost engineer. Boureslan began his tenure with Aramco in 1979 in its Houston, Texas, office, but a year later he requested and received a transfer to the company’s offices in Saudi Arabia. Boureslan alleged that in the ensuing four years he was the victim of racial and religious harassment from his immediate supervisor. He was finally dismissed on June 16, 1984, for allegedly poor work performance.
