School assault: Victim’s father rejects reconciliation attempts

JEDDAH — The parents of a young school student who was assaulted by two men at his school in Jeddah have rejected attempts for reconciliation and insisted on taking the case to the court. Muataz, 14, was attacked by two men at an intermediate school in Al-Zahra district of Jeddah. The Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIP) is currently investigating the case following a complaint from the parents. The incident, which went viral on social media early this week, was widely condemned. Muataz’s father said he came to the school to pick up his son after the noon prayer and found the school chief and a number of teachers waiting for him at the main gate. He said he saw his son with signs of attack all over him. “There were bruises on his body and his clothes were torn,” he said. The father said the school chief took him to his office and showed him a video clip of the incident. “The father of another student and a relative who was in military uniform attacked my son following an altercation between the two,” he said. The father said fights among students are normal and does not warrant the intervention of parents. He said he reported the incident to Al-Salama police station. “The police summoned the two assailants, questioned them and then referred the matter to the BIP,” he added. The father said his son sustained bruises in the face and other parts of his body, in addition to a psychological trauma for which he took him to a psychiatric hospital. “My son stopped going to school for fear of being attacked again,” he added. He said the father of the other student called him and apologized but he would not give up the case. “I totally reject any attempt for reconciliation. The matter is in the hands of the concerned legal authorities. I am now waiting for the results of the investigations,” the father said. Lawyer and legal consultant Khaled Al-Mihmadi said the attackers would be jailed and lashed even if the father decides to give up his private rights. “The public rights will remain even if the private rights are relinquished,” he added.