Saudi Human Rights Commission recently released statistics which show that the number of domestic violence cases recorded during the past five years stands at 12,267.

Additionally, the number of domestic violence cases against women during the past three years is 1,110, as well as 372 child abuse cases which were recorded during the same period.

“This should serve as a warning bell to all parties concerned,” Dr. Bandar Al-Aiban, head of the Saudi Human Rights Commission, said, adding that such figures might constitute a platform for further studies to follow up the implementation of present regulations and to encourage research and surveys to address the issue.

Al-Aiban was speaking at a seminar regarding the “protection against abuse” system and the role of government bodies and civil society in its implementation, which was held in Riyadh recently.

He said the system included all the aspects of protection, adding: “Since it is only the first year of its implementation, it is impractical and too early to judge on any of its aspects.”

Dr. Abdullah Ayusuf, undersecretary for social development at the Ministry of Social Affairs, said many of the child abuse cases involved parents of the children.