Manama: Saudi educational authorities have suspended a teacher after he was caught hitting a student.

The incident happened in a classroom in a school for gifted students in the Red Sea city of Jeddah. The video footage shows a student asked a question before the teacher became angry and heads towards his table before repeatedly hitting him on his head.

The student, named as Hassan, tries to argue his case by explaining he just wanted an answer to his question, but the teacher continues the abuse.

The footage, caught by one of the students on his mobile phone, went viral on social media, sparking wide outrage and shock. Corporal punishment is strictly banned in Saudi schools.

The teacher on Monday apoligised to the student in front of his classmates and kissed his head to express his sorrow, according to reports in Saudi Arabia. The pupil apparently accepted the apologies and kissed his teacher on the head in the traditional expression of respect from the young towards the old.

However, the father said he was not content with just the apologies and reported the inident to the police.

The father, Haytham, said that the teacher's act of regret was not acceptable and added that he objected to the filming of the apology and to posting it on social media.

"What the teacher did was utterly wrong, especially that my son did not do anything objectionable, " the father told Saudi daily Okaz.

"I heard about the beating of my son from his friends, but I never thought it was so atrocious . The teacher's reaction is incredible because all my son did was to ask him what the expression 'cradle of civilisations' meant."

The father said his son was deeply affected by the incident and had expressed concerns about going to school.

A spokesperson for the education district in Jeddah that said the teacher has been suspended until the completion of the investigations into the case.