Saudi: Women who passed on HIV through sex hunted by police
Manama: Police in the southwestern Saudi Arabian province of Asir have launched an investigation to identify foreign women who transmitted HIV to two local young men through sexual relations. The cases of the men, aged 18 and 25, were discovered when health officials confirmed that they had contracted the virus and were HIV-positive. The pair admitted that they had unprotected sex with Syrian women beggars for money near a public park in the city of Abha, the capital of the province, local news site Sabq reported on Thursday.
The cases sparked an all out alarm to identify and arrest women who had illicit sexual relations in the area, with a focus on women beggars. Several warnings had been issued by the local authorities about the dangers from the spread of the disease and the serious threats it could pose to the population, Sabq said. In their comments, bloggers called for raising the awareness of young men about the dangers of illicit sexual relations and warning them against engaging in them.
“Young men should be really cautious,” Abu Basel, a blogger, wrote. “Simple fleeting minutes could change their lives forever and cause them and their families great suffering and pains. They should uphold religious values and abstain from engaging in doomed activities.”
Al Gannas, also a blogger, said that he had often seen women beggars in the city’s restaurants area and that raids to crack down on those involved in the shady business should be conducted there. However, another blogger said that the priority for the authorities should be to take action against the men, not the women. “Young men must be held accountable and not the Syrian beggars who are living in difficult circumstances,” Bader, a blogger, posted.“God knows how much they are suffering and how some people are exploiting their vulnerability.”
Writing under the moniker of Citizen, a blogger said that the Aids report could have another layer.“May God protect everyone from this threat,” Citizen posted. “These women could have been sent by [Syrian President] Bashar {Al Assad] and his agents to spread Aids in the region. The efforts to identify and arrest the women beggars should not be exerted by simple employees, but rather by a string task force to be deployed by the Province of Asir. The matter is highly dangerous and its threats should not be underestimated in any way,” Citizen said.
