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An Italian belly dancer has been arrested and jailed in Egypt for outraging public decency with her saucy performances.
Linda Martino, 32, was held after videos of her scantily clad shows were spotted online by officials in Cairo where she lives and works.
Linda, who has more than two million followers on her Instagram profile, is in custody facing accusations of ‘outraging public decency and values of family and society’.
Videos on her social media show her shaking her hips snake like while pouting and thrusting her cleavage towards an appreciative audience in a Cairo venue.
According to reports in Italy, prosecutors in the Egyptian capital say that in the clips she ‘deliberately wore provocative clothing and performed dance moves with sexual allusions’.
Egypt is currently ruled by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi who came to power in 2014 and there have been concerns over human rights and political freedoms.
Fourteen belly dancers have also been arrested in the past two years as the country cracks down on exotic performing.
On her Instagram – which has dozens of clips of her and photographs in skimpy outfits – Linda describes herself as a ‘belly dancer’ and adds: ’More than you can handle.’
Linda Martino, 32, was held after videos of her scantily clad shows were spotted online by officials in Cairo where she lives and works
According to reports in Italy , prosecutors in the Egyptian capital say that in the clips she ‘deliberately wore provocative clothing and performed dance moves with sexual allusions’
Although born in Egypt, Linda married an Italian businessman and moved to Europe where she lived in Switzerland before returning and she has dual citizenship,
One of the charges she is being held on relates to her social media profile which says, ‘contains obscene content and incitement to debauchery’.
It adds that ‘in the clips she wore indecent clothing and exposed ample parts of her body deliberately, in clear violation of public morality and values of society’.
Linda was arrested on June 22 as she tried to leave Cairo airport for a tour in Dubai and has already made one court appearance and her request for bail was denied.
She told the hearing: ‘Belly dancing is an art, I did not incite debauchery or vice, my performances are not a crime.
‘What you see on my social media is art, it’s an artistic performance. Some of the clips have been manipulated to present me in a bad light.
‘I have all the licences and paperwork needed to perform in a professional capacity and the videos that are on my social media are all normal.
‘It is a dance routine that does not cross any boundaries and does not offend public morality.’
Linda moved to Italy in 2011 after marrying an Italian businessman called Domenico Martino, and they initially lived in the northern city of Cremona before moving to Switzerland.
Linda was arrested on June 22 as she tried to leave Cairo airport for a tour in Dubai and has already made one court appearance and her request for bail was denied
The couple divorced last year but Linda has Italian citizenship, although this is not recognised by Egyptian authorities and if convicted faces a year in prison with hard labour.
Italian authorities are aware of the case and have informed her ex-husband of the situation and are trying to arrange a consular visit.
No-one from the prosecutor’s office in Cairo was imemditely available for comment.
Belly dancing or Arabic dancing is popular in the Middle East and especially Egypt where it is performed and reosrts such as Sharm el Sheikh and Hurghada both popular with British holidaymakers.
