A snake that has haunted the corridors of a girls' school in Makkah for three years has finally forced pupils and teachers to relocate after all efforts to rid the building of its presence have failed. “We appreciate the situation they're in,” said Fatima Al-Layl, assistant head of education in Makkah. “We've tried spraying the school repeatedly and sent in teams from environmental health but no one's been able to catch it.” The school, located in the Al-Qashala district of Makkah, has 670 pupils, some of whom believe the wily creature to be a jinni given its uncanny ability to disappear when officials are summoned to a sighting. “As soon as they've gone it comes back,” pupils said. Teaching staff, however, blame the presence of the elusive serpent to the 30-year-old school building's state of disrepair.
