Over 70 female students are up in arms over a decision by the Umm Al-Qura University hostel authorities to increase the number of students from four to nine in a room of five square meters. The decision has been taken because the university wants to accommodate medical students at the University's Hostel in the Al-Nozha District situated in the center of the city. The Housing Deanship has threatened to punish any student who fails to comply with the decision, the students said. Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi, Head of the Teaching Staff Deanship and Public Relations at the university, said that the accommodation of the female medical students was a temporary measure. This was because the landlord of the building had allegedly violated some of the clauses of his lease contract. The University's President has ordered the Housing Deanship to lease another building as soon as possible, he said. Sources said that the medical students were moved because of the poor services at their previous residence. The protesting students complained that the new arrangements have forced some of them to sleep near the toilets. They also claimed that the university authorities have threatened them with tough action.
