Thats right, gnu. Men holding hands and kissing, too, I might add is a part of Middle Eastern societal norms.

I will also add that when the Iranian mother of my daughter's boyfriend came for a visit, my daughter spent the night with them in a hotel room. I protested saying it wasn't appropriate. The boyfriend said that sleeping arrangements were no big deal in Iranian homes. He said that at the end of a party (if going home was inconvenient) people slept wherever they were the most comfortable.

I think North Americans read sexuality into what is considered normal behaviour in many societies. It is North America that is preoccupied with the bedrooms of other people.