Man shoots Dr Muhammad Al Zabn arguing that a female gynecologist should have been there instead.
Advertisement
The Saudi Arabian police department have in custody a man who shot a male doctor just after he helped deliver his wife’s baby.
The baby was born in April at King Fahad Medical City in Saudi city of Riyadh, according to Gulf News.
London-based agency The New Arab news said that the new father had gone to the hospital and asked to see the doctor, under the pretext of wanting to thank him.
However some believe the hospital should respect cultural difference and provide a female obstetrician to attend births when requested.
Saudi Arabia has strict laws governing gender segregation in public places.
Bassam Al Buraikan, spokesperson for the King Fahad Medical City hospital confirmed the incident to Gulf News and said that authorities were conducting an investigation using evidence from the scene of the shooting.
“Islamic law does not permit women to visit their doctors without male guardians”, said Qais al-Mubarak, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars.
In 2011, more than 100 doctors and religious leaders wrote to the ministry of health urging them to build women-only hospitals. This does not include medical emergencies.
Advertisement
After meeting in the hospital’s garden, the man reportedly pulled out a handgun and shot Dr al-Zabn.
