The brother of the United Arab Emirates President has been cleared of charges of torture and rape.

The court found Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al Nahyan had been drugged and was therefore unaware of his actions.

He was charged with torturing an Afghan business associate in 2004, by beating him with whips and a plank of wood with a nail inside, striking him with an electric cattle prod and then driving a car over him in the desert.

His defence team argued the sheikh had been drugged by two brothers, who videotaped the beating in order to blackmail him, and said the drugs could cause anger, aggression and loss of memory - leaving him unaware of his actions.

The judge found the sheikh innocent of all charges, while the two brothers have been sentenced to five years in jail.