DAMMAM, 4 March 2007 — The anti-smoking chief at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Abdullah Al-Badah, said 600,000 young women are regular smokers, Al-Madinah newspaper reported yesterday. He then blamed the influence of the West and of satellite television for Saudis’ smoking habits. “I am concerned about the spread of smoking among young women,” said Al-Badah. “This is a very serious indication that the West is being imitated via the openness of satellites channels,” he said. The number of smokers in the United States has declined in recent decades along with the growth in public smoking bans in Western states. Countries in Europe, such as France and Ireland, have banned smoking in public places, including nightclubs.
