JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah waived on Monday the sentence of 60 lashes handed down to a Saudi woman journalist by the Jeddah Summary Court for her role in the controversial television program about a man's sexual exploits.

The king has also ordered the case to be transferred to the Ministry of Culture and Information.

The Jeddah Summary Court sentenced Rozana Al-Yami on Saturday for her involvement in the preparation of the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) show, "Bold Red Lines," in which Mazen Abdul Jawad bragged about his sexual adventures in mid-July.

"The king has vindicated me. I am satisfied with the king's order and I accept the decisions of the sovereign," Al-Yami told Reuters after being informed of the pardon. Al-Yami was working part-time with the channel.

She was accused of involvement in the preparation of the program, openly coordinating with the bragger on a satellite channel, and advertising the episode on the Internet to attract a large number of viewers.

Abdul Jawad caused a furor after he boasted on TV about having premarital sex and also provided explicit sexual descriptions and revealed how he picked up girls and women. His statements have been viewed as publicizing and promoting sinful behavior and violating Saudi social norms.

Al-Yami told media the judge dropped all charges that she had been directly involved with in the program.

The Culture and Information Ministry spokesman Abdul-Rahman Al-Hazzaa said the pardon meant that the issue would be in the hands of the ministry for possible disciplinary action.

The case of a second woman journalist Iman Rajab, who was convicted of working for the same controversial program, has also been transferred to the ministry.

Earlier this month, Judge Muhammad Amin Mirdad, of the summary court sentenced Abdul Jawad to five years in jail and 1,000 lashes for his bragging on the LBC show.

Three of his friends who appeared on the show with him were given two-year prison terms and 300 lashes each, while a cameraman who helped film the episode was sentenced to two months in jail.