MADINAH, 3 December 2007 — Authorities in Madinah ordered the arrest of a group of young men who, following a dispute over driving, beat up a 45 year-old Saudi man in Madinah causing him to fall into a coma. He died in hospital later.
Anas Sheikh, a father of three, was set upon by the group of young men following an altercation with two young Saudis about driving while on his way to visit a relative in hospital.
Relatives and friends of the two Saudis, who were playing football on a nearby field, joined the assaulters. The attack caused Sheikh to suffer internal bleeding and he fell into a coma.
According to eyewitnesses, the men only stopped when passers by intervened. Sheikh was taken to King Fahd Hospital where he was kept in intensive care but he died on Wednesday.
Following the attack, police arrested the attackers. Two of the men were kept in custody while the rest were released.
Sheikh’s relatives expressed disappointment with the police investigation and are calling for an independent autopsy to determine the real cause of death.
Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz ibn Majed has waded into the case and ordered the arrest of the young men.
Sheikh’s brother Talal said the family would never forgive those who attacked his brother.
“Those who did this are cowards. How could 13 men gang up against one man? They attacked him savagely with no mercy and consideration for his condition or age,” he said.
“The 11 men that were involved in the fight came from a nearby soccer field next to the hospital to join the two other attackers,” he said, adding that Sheikh has 10 brothers and that his wife is suffering from cancer.
“The news of her husband’s death will only worsen my sister-in-law’s condition,” Talal said.
