The victims of the fire at the Bara'em Al-Watan School are entitled to blood money and compensation from the Ministry of Education and other bodies if they are found to be negligent, according to Hamad Al-Rezain, a judge at the General Court in Riyadh. Al-Rezain said a number of parties should be held accountable for the disaster, including the owner of the school and the education administration which granted the license. The Ministry of Education would bear the liability of the blood money and monetary compensation if it is found guilty of negligence. This had often happened in previous court cases, he added. He pointed out that education administrations often allow school owners to convert residential units into schools, which is a flagrant violation of the law. He said the Civil Defense should also be questioned on the grounds that it is the party which inspected the safety devices at the school. And if it is found to be negligent, it should then pay the blood money and other monetary compensation. He said Islamic law allows victims to claim compensation for injuries caused by the negligence of others. Al-Rezain said psychological damages can only be claimed on the basis of a medical diagnosis. However, in such cases the court has to consider the degree and type of damage sustained by the victims. Taleb Aal Taleb, a judge at the District Court in Jeddah, said bodies and individuals can be found criminally responsible, similar to officials prosecuted for the Jeddah flood disaster, because lives were lost. He said the victims' families have the right to launch legal action under Article 148 of the Legal Proceedings Act. Saleh Bin Mesfir Al-Ghamdi, a former prosecutor, said the investigation will determine who is criminally responsible. __
