JEDDAH: Restaurants in Jeddah have started implementing the Mayoralty's order to ban smoking in restaurants, a matter that led several restaurant owners to prominently display the order to avoid any inconvenience to their customers. Eng. Ahmad Hamza Awad, head of the Airport Municipality, said the mayoralty's branch has notified all restaurants in north Jeddah about the ban. He said restaurants with smoking customers can devote special areas for them, but they must be properly ventilated. He pointed out that this is only allowed in restaurants having a covered area of at least 300 square meters .He said restaurant owners who fail to comply with the smoking ban will be punished. Some organizations have held the Jeddah Mayoralty accountable for the increasing rate of women smokers, particularly those who smoke shisha, because it allows indoor cafes to serve it to women, including teenagers.
