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British woman facing jail after allegedly having sex on Dubai beach
Rosalind Ryan and agencies guardian.co.uk,
Wednesday July 9, 2008
A British woman could be jailed for up to six years in Dubai after she was allegedly caught having sex on a beach.
The woman, said to be 30, was arrested after a police officer reportedly twice found her having sex with a British man on Jumeirah Beach.
She has reportedly been charged with having sex outside marriage, indecent behaviour in public, being drunk in public and assaulting a police officer.
She faces a jail sentence of between three months and six years in the state, one of seven that makes up the United Arab Emirates. The holidaymaker accused in connection with her arrest faces a similar sentence.
The Foreign and Commonwealth office confirmed that two British nationals were arrested on Saturday 5 July in Dubai.
A spokeswoman said: "The case is currently under investigation by the authorities in Dubai. We are providing consular assistance."
Although the woman is said to have lived in Dubai for the last three years, she could be deported from the state if she is convicted.
The FCO spokeswoman said Britain does not have a prisoner transfer agreement with Dubai, so if the woman was given a jail sentence, she would have to serve it in the state. "If she is deported, that would be part of her punishment and would be the end of the matter," she said.
The woman's employers would not comment on the situation.
The FCO's website says that public displays of affection are frowned upon in the UAE and there have been several arrests for kissing in public. Sex outside marriage is illegal, as is cohabitation, adultery and homosexual behaviour.
More than a million Britons visited the UAE in 2006 and over 100,000 British nationals live in the seven states.
Rosalind Ryan and agencies guardian.co.uk,
Wednesday July 9, 2008
A British woman could be jailed for up to six years in Dubai after she was allegedly caught having sex on a beach.
The woman, said to be 30, was arrested after a police officer reportedly twice found her having sex with a British man on Jumeirah Beach.
She has reportedly been charged with having sex outside marriage, indecent behaviour in public, being drunk in public and assaulting a police officer.
She faces a jail sentence of between three months and six years in the state, one of seven that makes up the United Arab Emirates. The holidaymaker accused in connection with her arrest faces a similar sentence.
The Foreign and Commonwealth office confirmed that two British nationals were arrested on Saturday 5 July in Dubai.
A spokeswoman said: "The case is currently under investigation by the authorities in Dubai. We are providing consular assistance."
Although the woman is said to have lived in Dubai for the last three years, she could be deported from the state if she is convicted.
The FCO spokeswoman said Britain does not have a prisoner transfer agreement with Dubai, so if the woman was given a jail sentence, she would have to serve it in the state. "If she is deported, that would be part of her punishment and would be the end of the matter," she said.
The woman's employers would not comment on the situation.
The FCO's website says that public displays of affection are frowned upon in the UAE and there have been several arrests for kissing in public. Sex outside marriage is illegal, as is cohabitation, adultery and homosexual behaviour.
More than a million Britons visited the UAE in 2006 and over 100,000 British nationals live in the seven states.