Woman freed from jail in Dubai after international outrage

A European woman who was jailed for having sex outside marriage after she complained to police in Dubai that she had been raped has been pardoned and is free to leave.

Norweigian Marte Deborah Dalelv’s sentencing to 16 months last week caused outrage in the west.

She said she was given back her passport by the public prosecutor’s office and her sentence had been dropped.

The 42-year-old claimed she was raped in March by a co-worker but she was charged with the sex offence after going to police in Dubai in a case that highlighted the clash between the city’s western-friendly atmosphere and its Islamic-based legal codes.

Ms Dalelv’s decision to go public about the sentence in a series of interviews appeared to put pressure on authorities in Dubai.

It was unclear whether authorities would keep the 13-month sentence against her alleged attacker, identified as a 33-year-old Sudanese man who was charged with consuming alcohol and sex outside marriage.