Nine government officials and private sector executives are standing trial in Oman on charges of taking or offering bribes, Reuters has reported. The six trials, which opened on 15 December, are part of a crackdown on corruption in Oman in the wake of the political unrest in 2011. The nine accused all denied the charges when they appeared at the Court of First Instance in Muscat.

Among the cases, the director-general of ports in the Ministry of Transport & Communications is accused of receiving a bribe from two executives at Consolidated Contractors Company - Oman (CCC-Oman), to facilitate several projects. In a second case, prosecutors allege one of the CCC-Oman executives paid a bribe to the former chief executive of Oman Oil Refinery Company to facilitate CCC-Oman operations.

In a third case, prosecutors allege an executive of Larsen & Toubro Oman paid a bribe to a senior manager at Oman Gas Company.

Eight individuals, including former or serving state officials, face similar charges in four other trials that have opened in the past six weeks.