The Commission for Investigation and Prosecution (CIP) has begun interrogating the father of three boys and a girl from Al-Mekhwat who were reportedly beaten and abused. The children's stepbrothers and stepmother are also implicated. The alleged abuse was discovered two months ago when the children's mother, an Arab of non-Saudi nationality, came to the Kingdom to visit them. “I found they had been tortured day and night,” the mother said. “They had been sleeping on bare floor tiles and shattered glass.” The mother thanked the Deputy Emir of Baha, Prince Faisal Bin Muhammad Bin Saud, and his wife, Princess Ghada Bint Humoud Bin Abdul Aziz, after they intervened to involve the CIP who received the case file on Saturday. CIP sources said the case would be thoroughly investigated. The Family Protection Center at King Fahd Hospital in Baha has meanwhile prepared a detailed report on the health of the children. The four children, of whom the boys are aged between 11 and 14, say that they suffered regular beatings, and that they were burnt and maltreated in other ways by their father, stepmother and stepbrothers. One of the children said that his stepmother would force him to clean the bathroom, and lock him in after filling the room with insecticide spray. “Our father forced us smoke cigarettes to make people stop having sympathy for us as our mother is away,” one of the children said. The girl said her stepmother took her to a deserted valley area, beat her repeatedly and burned her on the private parts of her body. She said her step-mother would only give them the leftovers of meals for them to eat, and would sometimes puts insecticide in it. She also said that she and her brothers were made to work everyday in the house at the expense of their schoolwork. The mother is seeking a trial by Shariah Court for the abusers of her children.
