The Jakarta Post, Indonesia, 2 July 1997

Mass flogging in southern Gulf

ABU DHABI:- Police in a Gulf emirate whipped five Arabs in a packed court to punish them for driving while drunk, newspapers reported yesterday.

The five were stripped of their shirts and lashed 80 times each in the court of Ral al-Khaimah, a member of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The Sharia (Islamic) court in the northern emirate overlooking the Hormuz Strait found the five Moslems guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol, the reports said.

Ras al-Khaimah strictly enforces Islamic law for adultery and drinking alcohol, which is banned for Moslems. It has also decided to flog speeding motorists to curb a rise in road accidents.