Rain, flooding claim 12 lives in S Arabia

RIYADH, Jan 30 (Agencies): Saudi Arabia says 12 people have died and more than 170 have been injured this week due to flooding from heavy rain in the northwest.

The Civil Defence says Thursday that 10 people died in the area of Tabuk, one in Medina and another in the Northern Borders region. It did not say what caused the deaths.

Civil Defence forces say they rescued 271 people over the past four days, most of them in the al-Jawf region that borders Jordan. Several were also rescued in Mecca, Tabuk, and the Northern Borders region.

The heavy rains have flooded desert valleys and forced schools to close. The English-language Arab News in Saudi Arabia posted video of water engulfing a street in the city of Medina, home to one of Islam's holiest sites.

Between Sunday and Wednesday, the agency had rescued 271 people from flooded areas, more than half of them in Tabuk, the statement said.

Heavy downpours have hit several areas of Saudi Arabia this week, mainly in western and northwestern parts of the kingdom close to the border with Jordan.

A number of committees have been set up to assess the damage caused by the bad weather, the agency said.