Models arrested for naked photoshoot in Dubai to be deported

The models who held a naked photoshoot in broad daylight on the balcony of an apartment in Dubai's upscale Marina neighborhood will be deported for violating the country's public decency law.

At least 11 of the models and Russian photographer, Alexey Kontsov, 33, who is understood to have organised the shoot, were arrested and charged with public debauchery and producing pornography after images and videos of their photoshoot became viral and led to a crackdown.

Dubai's Attorney General Essam Issa al-Humaidan announced on Tuesday that those involved in Saturday's indecent activity will be deported back to their countries.

"The public prosecutor ordered the deportation of the accused for their behavior contrary to public morals," al-Humaidan said without further elaboration.

Police authorities refused to identify the nationalities of the models who were detained but according to The Sun, swift deportation is uncommon in the country's legal system. Cases like this usually call for a trial or are adjudicated first.

After all, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has a very strict law in place when it comes to nudity and other "lewd behaviour." There is a penalty of up to six months imprisonment and a fine of 5,000 dirhams ($1,356.38) for the violators. The law applies not only to those who live in or visit the UAE but also to tourists.

Thus, the pictures and clips of the naked Ukrainian models "came as a shock in the federation of seven Arab sheikhdoms," where even tamer behaviour such as kissing in public or drinking alcohol without a license have landed people in jail.

The videos and images that became viral Saturday evening showed the women lining up on the balcony in full view of the other residents. There were also those taken from inside the apartment. The models are believed to be from Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova who came to Dubai to do a photoshoot for an Israeli version of an American pornsite.

Meanwhile, Stanislav Voskresensky, the governor of Ivanovo, has spoken in response to Kontsov's arrest and deportation. He has reportedly asked the Russian Foreign Ministry and Russia's ambassador to the UAE for help as he wrote on social media, "We don't abandon our own."