Man allegedly beats sister into coma

AMMAN — Officials on Saturday said they have opened a major investigation into the reported beating of a university student by her brother almost a month ago.

The woman, who was not identified by officials, was admitted to hospital on December 24 after being “assaulted by her brother over family disputes”, Police Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said over the weekend.

“The case was referred to the Family Protection Department and the suspect was arrested as a result,” Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

The police official added that the suspect was referred to “the judiciary where he was released and was referred to the administrative governor”.

On Saturday, Amman Attorney General Hassan Abdallat instructed the criminal prosecutor to open an extensive investigation into the incident, a senior judicial source said.

“Abdallat also instructed a forensic expert to examine the victim and issue a report regarding her physical and health condition,” the senior judicial source told The Jordan Times.

The source would not reveal if anyone has been arrested in connection with the incident, adding that more information will be revealed to the public in the coming days.

A senior medical official told The Jordan Times on Saturday that the woman was in “stable condition and mostly unconscious”.

“Her points, as stipulated in the Glasgow Coma Scale [GCS], is 10 out of 15, which means she is mostly unconscious,” the medical official said.

The GCS is the summation of scores for eye, verbal and motor responses, according to the OpenAnesthesia website.

The minimum score is a 3, which indicates deep coma or a brain-dead state. The maximum is 15 which indicates a fully awake patient — the original maximum was 14, but the score has since been modified— the website stated.

A female forensic expert who accompanied the prosecutor examined the victim at the hospital and “is currently writing a report about the incident”, the senior medical source said.

Since the incident went viral on social media, it became the number one hashtag on Twitter by Saturday evening under the name “the Jordan University Hospital girl”.

Rawans Universe tweeted: “It’s sad how crimes committed against girls must turn into hashtags and posts to get noticed and acted upon.”

Aisha wrote in a tweet: “There have been several innumerable cases of violence against women. Isn’t it about time that we realise that schools should not just be a place where children are taught to read and write but also taught about love, respect and mental health?”

A woman named Farah also tweeted: “This girl was beaten by male members of her family ... I really hope this type of mentality fades away asap. I hope whoever does this kind of crime gets the cruelest punishment there is.”