Dubai - Men arrested at what a United Arab Emirates official said appeared to be a gay wedding are to be given hormone therapy, officials said on Tuesday.
The United state department condemned the forced medical treatment of gay couples in the Muslim Gulf Arab state and called on the UAE to comply with international legal standards.
Police raided a hotel earlier this month where 26 homosexuals of Asian, Arab and UAE origin were at a party. At least 12 were dressed in women's clothes and wearing makeup at what an official said appeared to be a wedding celebration.
Colonel Najm al-Sayar said the foreigners were likely to be deported while the locals, who are being held in the capital Abu Dhabi, would undergo hormonal therapy - most likely induced testosterone.
"They will be given psychological, medical and sociological treatment. Some of them will be given male hormones because some actually took female hormones," Sayar said.
"This kind of behaviour is immoral in our society and so we must address the issue."
Homosexuality is forbidden by law in most Arab states.
In Washington, state department spokesperson Sean McCormack said: "The United States condemns the arrest of a dozen same-sex couples in the United Arab Emirates and a statement by the interior ministry spokesperson that they will be subjected to government-ordered hormone and psychological treatment.
"The arrest of these individuals is part of a string of recent group arrests of homosexuals in the UAE. We call on the government of the United Arab Emirates to immediately stop any ordered hormone and psychological treatment and to comply with the standards of international law."
