Manama: Eight people, four men and four women, were arrested in a dawn raid on Tuesday by the police and members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, the religious police, and police in Saudi Arabia.

The raid was conducted following a tip-off that the unrelated men and women were holding a “party” at a recreational area in the suburbs of Makkah.

“The Commission acted on the tip and after its members verified the information, contacted the relevant authorities and took permission to raid the area and arrested the people at the party,” a source told Saudi news site Sabq. “The eight people were referred to the authorities while several items were confiscated during the operation.”

The mixing of unrelated men and women is strictly prohibited in Saudi Arabia.

In 2013, the Commission arrested 30 people on charges of debauchery and “Satanism” at an open-air party.

“The group were from 11 different nationalities and included Americans, Europeans, Arabs and Saudi nationals,” a member of the Commission posted on his Twitter account.

“The men and women mixed openly at a party, drank alcohol and used drugs as they engaged in satanic rituals, moving around fire and listening to loud music. Unfortunately, Saudis were among them,” he said.

In June, several people were arrested in Jeddah on the Red Sea following raids on two parties in which most participants were homosexuals.

The raids were conducted simultaneously at dawn in the Harzat area, known for its recreational facilities.

Security staff and members of the Commission noted down the numbers on the licence plates of the cars parked near the party venues before they stormed the premises. The vehicle details were recorded so as to ensure that those who managed to escape the raid would be tracked down and arrested.

“The raids led to the arrest of several people, mainly gays, and netted locally produced alcoholic drinks and hashish,” sources said. “Those who were arrested were referred to a police station while those who fled the premises will be summoned since they were all identified.”

Homosexuality and cross-dressing are social and legal offences in Saudi.