Saudi airport staff sentenced for abusing Iranian pilgrims

A Saudi security official says two airport employees have been convicted and sentenced to four years in prison each for sexually harassing two male Iranian pilgrims.
The official says the court also ordered that the two workers at Jiddah International Airport receive 1,000 lashes each. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media.
He says the criminal court in Jiddah, a Red Sea city that's the main gateway for pilgrims visiting Mecca and Medina, handed down the ruling today.
The harassment incident in March prompted Iran to suspend all minor pilgrimages, or umrahs, to Saudi Arabia.

Details of the abuse were not disclosed. The two pilgrims said they were sexually harassed at the airport before their flight back to Iran.