London:
A 34-year-old Briton, working with the United Nations, has been jailed for two months in the UAE for giving an airport worker "the finger" in Dubai, a news report said.
Paul Anthony allegedly got into a row with a female airport employee when she refused to let him use a customer services desk phone.
A Dubai court heard he "cursed" the Muslim woman in front of colleagues then thrust his middle finger in her face as he passed through border controls, leading British tabloid
'
The Sun' reported.
He was arrested minutes after the woman lodged a complaint with the police. He was convicted of indecency and insulting the employee named in court as Maryam at a
previous hearing.
However, he pleaded not guilty and launched an appeal on Thursday, the report said.
Court sources said that Anthony worked for the UN and was planning a six-day stopover in Dubai en route from an Asian country. He was locked up for three days then bailed
after the first hearing. He faces a month awaiting an appeal against a two-month jail term and deportation order.
A Dubai court source was quoted as saying, "Brits have often fallen foul of decency laws but no one's been arrested this quickly."