British man jailed for touching man's hip in Dubai freed, campaigners say

A British man who was sentenced to three months in prison in Dubai for touching a man's hip in a bar has been freed, according to his representatives.

Jamie Harron, from Stirling, was arrested in July over the incident in which he said he put his hand on a man's hip to avoid spilling a drink in a crowded bar.

The 27-year-old electrician had been working in Afghanistan and was on a two-day stopover in the United Arab Emirates at the time.

After his arrest for public indecency he lost his job and was told he could face up to three years in jail.

Campaign group Detained in Dubai (DiD) said Mr Harron was sentenced to three months imprisonment in court on Sunday, but has now had his passport returned to him after ruler of the emirate, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, made a special order for the case against Mr Harron to be dismissed.

Radha Stirling, CEO of DiD, said: "We wish to express our deepest gratitude to Sheikh Mohammed for his personal intervention in this case, and for exonerating Jamie at long last.

"This was a courageous and honourable decision on the part of Sheikh Mohammed, and while it highlights the urgent need for judicial reform in the country, it is also a hopeful sign that the United Arab Emirate's leadership possesses the will and vision to pursue such reforms in the future."

Prior to Mr Harron's sentencing on Sunday, he had already been sentenced in absentia to 30 days in prison for failing to appear at a court hearing for making a rude gesture and drinking alcohol during the same July incident.

He was initially jailed for five days and then released on bail with his passport confiscated.