Manama: Security authorities in Saudi Arabia have arrested a Syrian national for throwing acid on women in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
The attacker admitted in his confessions that he attacked the women by throwing the corrosive liquid on their abayas, a full-length, traditional outer garment worn by women in the Gulf.
He said that the attacks were motivated by his hatred for women after he was repeatedly rejected as a marriage partner, building in him an animosity toward them.
He said that he targeted women who were wearing coloured or adorned abayas, without explaining the reasons. He insisted that he was not linked in any way with the victims and that they just happened to be there.
The police launched an investigation on June 24, on the eve of Eid Al Fitr, when the first attack occurred at a shopping mall on Prince Saud Al Faisal Road in Jeddah. The victim reported the incident, saying that she was not initially aware of the nature of the liquid thrown on her abaya.
“He threw some liquid on my abaya and ran away, making strange gestures, but keeping a smile on his face as if nothing unusual had happened,” she said.
He was described as a lean man in his 30s with a swarthy face, who wore trousers a and a shirt.
The police kept a vigil as they were expecting another incident, but the attacker kept a low profile for some time.
He later carried out new attacks in two other shopping malls. One witness reported that he saw the attacker running inside a mall and asked him about it.
“He told me that he had lost his wallet with important documents inside it and that he was looking for it,” the witness said. “It is only later when I saw a crowd of people surrounding a woman who had been attacked that I realised who he was.”
Saudi daily Okaz on Wednesday reported that following the identification and arrest of the attacker, the police are now looking for a woman who put up a recording on social media, claiming that an African gang was targeting women and children by attacking them with acid.
The woman who claimed she worked at a local hospital will be questioned for spreading fear and concerns through her baseless allegations, the daily said.
