Probe ordered into attack on mall woman

Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has ordered an investigation into the beating of a Saudi woman by a man at Mahmal shopping center in downtown Jeddah.

The police arrested the 48-year-old Saudi man at a hotel after a video of the crime went viral on social media on Monday.

The man attacked his victim outside a shop selling cosmetics where she worked as a saleswoman.

According to a local Internet-based publication, the man beat the woman after she tried to remove his goods that were displayed for sale in front of the shop.

The man attacked the woman physically and scolded her using abusive language, the electronic daily said, quoting an informed source.

The woman, who comes from outside the Makkah region, lives in Jeddah.

Saudi bloggers criticized the man for attacking the woman.

They urged the municipality to stop the illegal activities of street vendors in front of the popular mall.

One blogger, who introduced himself as Abu Omar Hussein, urged the government to review decisions allowing women to trade in close proximity with men.

“We should open women-only markets to protect the honor of women traders,” he said.

The man beat the woman after she tried to remove his goods that were displayed for sale in front of the shop.