Police in Al-Russ in Qassim arrested a gang of five youths who fired at a police patrol car when the police stopped them for a routine inspection. As the police team stopped them, the gang leader got out of the jeep they were traveling in and began shooting at the patrol car. He then jumped back into the jeep and the gang drove away toward the nearby mountains. A policeman was slightly injured in the attack. Police later followed and surrounded them. The gang surrendered without much resistance.
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A university student from Qunfuda in the Makkah province died at the local hospital where he was admitted following a drowning incident. He was rescued from drowning at the Qunfuda beach on Wednesday. Saeed Al-Zahrani, who was in the company of his friends, had ventured into the sea when he was carried away by a huge wave. Though he was rescued by the Border Guard and taken to the nearby hospital, he died shortly afterward.
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The Commerce Ministry will soon issue a list of 20 companies and establishments involved in trade fraud, according to an official source at the ministry in Riyadh. He said the ministry’s department to fight trade fraud was preparing the list and will publish it in local papers. The ministry had earlier announced that it will suspend its services to companies involved in trade fraud. But the ministry reactivated these measures in a bid to protect consumers. It has already directed chambers of commerce and industries to stop applications of such firms.
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Security authorities in the Makkah region arrested about 2,750 overstayers and violators of iqama regulations during the past two days, according to Capt. Yahya Al-Qahtani. He said, police arrested more than 150 overstayers and illegal aliens in Bahra and Harazat, east of Jeddah, alone with some 40 patrol police officers taking part in the operation. Col. Ali Al-Qurashi, commander of the Passport Department patrol police, said the operation was part of the department’s efforts to flush out overstayers and other illegal expatriate workers from the country.
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Taif Municipality closed down a restaurant in Hawiya after 31 persons suffered food poisoning. They had eaten shawarma sandwiches at the restaurant. The victims were admitted to the Armed Forces Hospital in Hada, Prince Sultan Hospital, King Faisal Hospital and Nahda Private Hospital. Many of them have already been discharged following treatment. Dr. Khaled Al-Sumairy said the restaurant will have to pay a fine of SR1,000 to SR5,000 to each person who fell ill with food poisoning.
— Compiled by P.K. Abdul Ghafour
