An investigation has been launched into allegations that a Qur'an teacher beat a child, with the permission of his father, during lessons at a mosque in Makkah's Tandabawy neighborhood.

The Qur’an memorization associations of Makkah and Jeddah have been carrying out the probe into the incident, which took place in May this year.

Sharif Nawaf Al-Ghalib, chairman of the Makkah association, said that the government has banned teachers from using any form of violence to punish students.

About 97,000 male and female students attend about 4,900 official Qur'an memorization schools in Makkah, all of which are closely monitored, he said.

Al-Ghalib said the accused teacher, student, and the student’s father, are all Burmese, and that the school was unauthorized. The teacher has produced a written waiver from the father allowing the beating of the child for not knowing his lessons.

Al-Ghalib said the association had stopped the teacher from conducting any lessons and would submit a detailed report to the Makkah Emirate for further action.

Abdulaziz Hanafi, head of the Khayrkom Association for Qur’an Memorization, said that the Kingdom has more than 700 certified associations, but there are also other unlicensed schools operating outside the supervision of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, which tend to make many mistakes.

He said that government bans the use of violence to discipline students. “Anyone who watches the video on social networking sites will automatically reject and renounce this violent behavior by the teacher. This incident will therefore not go away easily,” he said.

Matouk Sharif, the founder and president of the Saudi Society for Child Welfare, said beatings make it less likely for children to learn important life skills, gain self-confidence and become successful.