An 18-year-old British teenager has been sentenced to one year in a Dubai jail for having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.
The teenager was on holiday with his family in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when he met the girl — who is now 18 — at the same hotel.
The teenagers who are both from London were said to have made plans to continue their romance when they returned to the UK.
Detained in Dubai, a group of UAE legal experts, said the young man was charged because the girl’s mother found their chats and pictures back in the UK. The woman subsequently contacted police in Dubai and he was arrested.
The head of the campaign group Detained In Dubai, who recently announced the teenager’s sentence, described the judgment an “utter disgrace”.
“The UK was once the most diplomatically influential western country in the Middle East. Now, we are seeing countries like Canada, Malaysia, Ireland and the US leaving the UK way behind,” Radha Stirling, the group’s founder, wrote on X.
“The Labour government should be ashamed they have not secured the freedom of a teenage tourist. It wasn’t a difficult job.”
She said the boy, who has been held in Dubai since September, would appeal against his sentence and was “desperately hoping to come home this week”.
“I urge young people and parents to reconsider holidays in Dubai where so many people find themselves at risk of unfair and lengthy detention in prisons notorious for human rights abuses and torture,” Stirling added.
In Dubai, if an adult has a sexual relationship with a person under 18 they can be prosecuted for having a sexual relationship with a minor.
