Mother ordered to pay Dh20,000 for whipping children with phone charging cable

The woman told the court her intention was to make the boys study harder

The woman struck her children with a phone charging cable. EPA

A court in Fujairah has fined an Emirati mother and told her to pay Dh20,000 compensation to her children after she hit them with a phone charging cable.

The case was initially taken to the Fujairah Court of First Instance in October. It ruled that the crime was punishable by jail or a fine of up to Dh5,000, but it later showed leniency and reduced it to Dh1,100.

The woman's ex-husband, who filed the case after spotting signs of abuse on the children's bodies, then took it to the emirate's civil court and appealed for compensation.

He told judges that his sons, 8 and 10, could not attend classes during their treatment period, which affected their studies.

He also said they have become socially withdrawn and are in constant fear.

In a new verdict given by the civil court judges, the mother was ordered to pay the compensation and the fine ordered by the Court of First Instance.

The father of the children reported the incident, which happened earlier this year, to the police after he saw bruises and marks on their bodies when they visited him.

He took them to a doctor who said in an official report that they had sustained multiple bruises and scratches on the back, thighs, legs and face.

During police and prosecution questioning, the woman admitted hitting the children, saying her intention was to make them study harder.

She told investigators that she would not hit them again.

The father will receive the compensation sum and this may be used for catch-up classes and doctor visits.