Saudi religious police relieves officers over attack on woman

Three members of Saudi Arabia’s religious police were relieved of their duties after reports emerged last week that an officer in the force had beaten an Afghan woman in a Makkah park.

On Friday, Saudi-based al-Watan daily reported that an officer belonging to the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice was being investigated after he reportedly beat a 27-year-old on her head in a Makkah park.

The officer was on a field tour prior to the evening prayer when the incident occurred.

The officer denied the allegations, claiming that he merely reminded her of the prayer time verbally and added that her physical injuries were caused after she fell from one of the rides, the paper said.

On Tuesday, the religious police authority held the officer responsible for the incident, relieved him of his field duties and reassigned him to the northern region of al-Jawf where he will take on an administrative post.

The officer’s colleague, who was present at the time of the incident, was also relieved of his field duties for not filing a report on the case and was transferred to the Taif region.

The head of Makkah’s religious police branch was also relieved of his duties for offering the officers assistance after the incident. He was transferred to Jeddah where he will take on administrative duties.