A 23-year-old social media influencer faces being executed by firing squad in Dubai after being charged with the murder of her boyfriend, a campaign group has said. TikTok star Brooke George from Gravesend, Kent, stabbed her 26-year-old British partner in self-defence after she was “repeatedly punched” and “feared for her life”, according to Detained in Dubai.

George, a former John Lewis worker, met her partner on Facebook and travelled to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after developing a relationship with him online, the campaign group said. It added that after a positive first visit, George, 23, alleged her partner became “increasingly controlling and abusive” during a second trip. After an evening at McCafferty’s Irish Bar in Jumeirah Village, Dubai, George alleged her partner became intoxicated and assaulted her.

According to her family, George contacted them in a state of panic after being “repeatedly punched” and had arranged a flight home before returning to the apartment to recover her passport, Detained in Dubai said.

The group said her family alleged she was “crying and begging for her passport’s return when she was punched hard in the face and attacked”, adding: “Brooke says she feared for her life and, reaching for a kitchen knife within her grasp, acted in self-defence.”

Detained in Dubai said a “bruised and battered Brooke” was arrested in the early hours of Monday and charged with murder “despite the circumstances having not been thoroughly investigated”.

Detained in Dubai said George has received “little explanation of the proceedings due to the language barrier”, as well as being “deprived of access to her embassy and forced to make statements in the absence of a lawyer”.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: “We are in touch with a British woman detained in the UAE, we are supporting her family, and we are in contact with the local authorities.”

The influencer’s mother, Thereza George, said she was “deeply concerned for her welfare”.

In a statement, released through Detained in Dubai, she said: “After Brooke returned to Dubai for the second time, the dynamic between them had clearly changed.

“The day before the incident, she did not seem like herself. She was quieter and not her usual happy, cheerful self, but she did not tell me why. That evening they went to a bar in Dubai.

“When I spoke to Brooke right after the incident, she was absolutely terrified. I have never seen my daughter so frightened in my life. She was crying uncontrollably. I could see that one of her eyes was badly swollen and was beginning to close.

“The daughter I spoke to that night was utterly terrified. I firmly believe she was desperately trying to get home and away from whatever had happened to her.”

Radha Stirling, chief executive of Detained in Dubai, said that “rather than treating Brooke solely as a murder suspect, investigators must also examine her being the victim of serious violence and possible exploitation”.

Ms Stirling added: “We will be working to ensure that her rights are protected, that she receives a fair trial, and that the circumstances leading to this tragedy are fully and impartially examined.

“Those closest to Brooke became increasingly concerned that she may have been lured to Dubai under false pretences for the purpose of exploitation.

“Their concerns were fuelled by his unexplained change in behaviour, the one way ticket, the bikini clad professional photo shoot arranged during her first visit, the alleged withholding of her passport, Brooke telling friends that ‘things weren’t right’, and her growing fear that she needed to escape.

“We are calling for Brooke to be released on bail pending the outcome of the investigation.

“She should be afforded protection, appropriate medical care, legal representation and immediate British consular assistance while the investigation proceeds.”