Jailed Dubai kissing pair lose appeal over conviction

20 July BBC

A British man and woman jailed in Dubai for kissing in public have lost their appeal against their conviction.

Ayman Najafi, 24, and Charlotte Adams, 25, were sentenced to a month in prison with subsequent deportation and fined about £200 for drinking alcohol.

The pair were arrested in November after a local woman accused them of breaking the country's decency laws by kissing on the mouth in a restaurant.Najafi said he was "very disappointed". The pair plan to make a second appeal.The initial complaint against them was made by a 38-year-old woman who said she was offended by their behaviour at the Jumeirah Beach Residence, where she was dining with her daughter.

'Very harsh'The pair's defence lawyers said the woman who did not appear in court had not seen the kiss herself, but had been told by her two-year-old child that the girl had seen them kissing.The defendants also claimed they had merely kissed each other on the cheek, and therefore had not broken any laws.

The BBC's Ben Thompson, at the court, said the judge spoke entirely in Arabic as he quickly dismissed the appeal, saying he upheld the previous sentence. They were fined 1,000 dirhams, which is about £200. They now have 30 days to appeal.It was left to the defence lawyer to explain the verdict to Najafi and Adams.

Najafi said after the case: "It's very harsh, based on contradictory evidence. The courts haven't called on any of our witnesses who are prepared to testify that this didn't happen.

His mother, Maida Najafi, told the BBC her son had grown up in the UK and was used to common British greetings.