The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has recently launched an extensive campaign to silence opposition, marked by a stark disregard for justice and human rights. This crackdown includes a series of arrests, summonses, and deportations targeting individuals who criticize Israel’s actions in Gaza, blatantly violating the right to freedom of speech. This disturbing trend continues the UAE’s long-standing restrictions on freedoms, which have only intensified in recent months.
Since formalizing relations with Israel in 2020, the UAE has increasingly stifled anti-normalization sentiments and critical voices regarding Israel’s actions, particularly after the events in Gaza on October 7, 2023. Recently, several Emirati nationals and foreign residents have been arrested and summoned for social media posts opposing Israeli military actions or normalization with Tel Aviv. For instance, ‘K.H.’, a Jordanian national of Palestinian descent working in Dubai for five years, was summoned by the State Security Service in Abu Dhabi on April 10, 2024, over a Facebook post condemning Israel. He was detained for three days without access to a lawyer and forced to leave the UAE without permission to submit any objection.
Similarly, an Egyptian national reported being interrogated by UAE security officials on March 25 for social media posts criticizing the Arab and Islamic response to the Gaza famine during Ramadan and demanding an end to normalization with Israel. After hours of questioning, he was fired from his job and given 48 hours to leave the country without legal recourse or opportunities to object to the decision. Additionally, UAE security services have reportedly launched intimidation campaigns in universities, threatening academics and student activists if they disobey orders to refrain from protesting against Israel.
These recent events add to the existing human rights violations by UAE authorities, particularly the State Security Service, which unlawfully detains foreign nationals for exercising their right to free speech. The Emirati government has a history of holding such individuals in inhumane conditions, interrogating them, and in some cases, torturing them physically and psychologically before deporting them on fabricated charges. The question therefore arises as to how the UAE can continue this violation of the right to free speech.
The explanation is that such actions are justified by the UAE through categorizing free speech as a terrorist crime. For instance, during the UAE ‘84’ mass trial against dozens of activists, human rights advocates, and dissenters who signed a petition demanding constitutional changes, Emirati authorities claimed these activities were part of a secret terrorist organization called the Dignity and Justice Committee. Furthermore, the government argued that the activities fell under the Emirati Anti-Terrorism Law of 2014, which penalizes individuals building such ‘organizations’ with life imprisonment or even the death penalty, distorting the true meaning of organizing a terrorist group.
The international community must pressure the UAE to end this repressive campaign. Human rights organizations should be granted access to detainees, and all individuals detained for expressing their opinions should be released unconditionally. The UAE must also repeal laws that violate human rights, including the 2014 Anti-Terrorism Law, to align with its constitutional and international obligations. Ensuring freedom of speech and protecting dissenting voices is crucial for the country’s progress and global reputation.
