Unmarried couples arrested

Fifty-two unmarried Muslim couples face charges of sexual misconduct and possible jail after being caught in hotel rooms by Malaysia's Islamic morality police.

Scores of officers fanned out across budget hotels in central Selangor state before dawn on January 1, knocking on doors and detaining unmarried Muslim couples who were sharing rooms.

They are expected to be charged with "khalwat", or "close proximity", which under Malaysia's Islamic Sharia law is described as couples not married to each other being alone together in a private place.