65% of secondary schoolgirls in Saudi smoke, says survey

February 8, 2015

Riyadh, Feb 8: The number of smokers among Saudi secondary schoolgirls reached 65 percent, while the rate among intermediate schoolgirls stands at 45 percent, a recently-published survey said.

The survey, conducted by the Faculty of Medicine at the Jeddah-based King Abdulaziz University, said the phenomenon poses a real threat to the health of Saudi women in the long term.

In a similar study earlier, Najran University founded that one-third of the Saudi population smoked on a regular basis.

The Kingdom ranked second and fifth at the GCC and global levels respectively, in terms of the number of female smokers, Al-Madina daily said.

However, the GCC countries have taken steps to curb the increasing number of smokers by raising the prices of cigarettes by 200 percent.

The move did not have the desired effect, and the number of smokers has risen alarmingly.

The reasons for the rising number of smokers among teenage girls has been attributed to wider exposure to the culture of foreign countries in light of the increased use of social media, mobile applications and the spread of e-cigarettes.

Nagwa Mousa, mother of two daughters, said smoking is the outcome of lack of guidance and monitoring by parents at home.

She pointed out that parents should befriend their children and listen attentively to their needs to ensure a healthy relationship.

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Syrian Town erupts after Israeli forces enter Beit Jinn; heavy casualties reported

News Network

November 28,2025

Several Syrians were killed and more than two dozen others injured in Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus, amid intensified incursions by the occupying regime since the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rule.

Syrian state TV reported that the casualties occurred during an overnight Israeli assault involving helicopters and drones on the town of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside. The attack followed an Israeli military unit’s entry into the town, where they were surrounded by local residents, leading to gunfire and direct confrontations.

According to the report, “The occupation army’s helicopters and artillery shelled Beit Jinn, located at the foothills of Mount Hermon, resulting in 13 martyrs and 25 injured civilians.” The broadcaster did not specify the full extent of damage.

Al-Ikhbariyah Syria confirmed that the shelling coincided with Israeli soldiers entering Beit Jinn, while artillery pounded surrounding areas. The broadcaster stated that the escalation began after local residents clashed with an Israeli patrol that had infiltrated the southern town and “kidnapped” three young men.

Following a two-hour exchange of heavy fire, Israeli forces withdrew and repositioned on the hill of Butt al-Warda at the town’s outskirts.

Israeli media acknowledged that six soldiers were wounded in the clashes—three of them seriously—describing the confrontation as a “sudden ambush” that forced the deployment of reserve units and air support to secure an exit route. No further details were provided.

The aggression has fueled renewed displacement from Beit Jinn, with residents fleeing to nearby villages amid increasingly frequent Israeli attacks.

The raid came just a day after Israeli troops carried out another ground incursion into Umm al-Luqas village in Quneitra province. According to SANA, an Israeli unit in four vehicles entered the village, raided several homes, and later withdrew.

Syria condemned the repeated incursions as violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement and UN resolutions, urging the international community to enforce compliance and pressure Israel to halt its operations and withdraw fully.

Israel has expanded its attacks across Syrian territory following the collapse of the Assad government last year. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly instructed his forces to push deeper into Syrian territory and seize strategic positions.

Meanwhile, critics say the HTS-led interim government’s inaction and growing normalization gestures toward Israel have emboldened Tel Aviv to intensify its military operations. HTS, formerly linked to al-Qaeda, seized control of Damascus last December, formally ending Assad’s rule.

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