JEDDAH, 2 January — Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed ordered legal action against two princes who were among some 300 youths arrested for causing disturbances on the Jeddah Corniche during the Eid holidays.
The governor issued the order after the completion of preliminary investigations into charges brought against the princes, Al-Watan newspaper reported yesterday.
"Justice will take its own course," Prince Abdul Majeed said.
The youths were arrested at dawn on the second day of Eid Al-Fitr on the Corniche, where thousands of families and other picnickers gather to spend their evenings during weekends and holidays. The two princes were allegedly among the youths who blocked the main Corniche Road and started harassing families, ignoring orders by police to disperse.
The youths went berserk on the beach, sowing chaos and confusion in the crowd. Eyewitnesses said they put on masks to frighten women and children.
The unruly crowd also attacked a patrol team and damaged their cars, Al-Watan said.
Addressing a meeting of officers from various law enforcement agencies at the Police Training Institute after the incident, Director of Public Security Maj. Gen. Asaad Abdul Kareem Al-Fareeh said the arrest of the princes drives home the fact that police should not make any distinction between ordinary people and VIPs when they are discharging their duties.
He deplored the reluctance of policemen to register offenses committed by influential people because they feared retaliatory action.
