UAE’s Arrest and Deportation Campaigns Against Online Supporters of Gaza Revealed

Testimonies from residents of the UAE, hailing from various Arab nationalities, have revealed that they were subjected to arrest, torture, fines, and even deportation for their online solidarity with Palestinians enduring a relentless Israeli extermination campaign in Gaza for the past ten months.

According to testimonies published by the Palestinian Press Agency (Safa), UAE security forces have recently conducted arrest and deportation campaigns against dozens, possibly even hundreds, of individuals without any wrongdoing or violation of public order or law—solely as a punishment for their online support for Palestinians in Gaza.

These testimonies indicate that some of the detainees, especially those of Palestinian, Egyptian, Tunisian, Moroccan, and Algerian descent, were kidnapped-like, subjected to investigation and physical and psychological torture in prisons such as Al-Awir, Al-Razeen, Al-Sadr, and Dubai Central. They were later forced to pay hefty fines reaching up to $250,000 before being deported from the country.

A Palestinian resident, identified as “S.B.” (who preferred to remain anonymous for safety reasons), never imagined that simply liking a friend’s post on Facebook, which displayed images of Israeli atrocities in Gaza, would turn his life upside down.

“S.B.” shared that three days after liking his friend’s post on Facebook, he was summoned for interrogation by the state security apparatus and detained in an extremely small solitary cell, measuring just one square meter, with bright lights shining on him constantly.

He added, “The interrogators asked me about Palestinian organizations, hurling vile insults at them and their leaders, sparing almost no group except for one that has ties to the state.”

After days of interrogation, torture, and humiliation, UAE authorities imposed a fine of approximately a quarter of a million dollars on “S.B.,” a sum equivalent to what he had earned over the years in the country, before deporting him.

He recounted encountering dozens of Arab residents during his detention who had been arrested and mistreated simply for liking or sharing posts on social media that hinted at solidarity with Gaza.

Tunisian national “T.M.,” in his forties, who had worked in the UAE for seven years, shared that he was detained for nearly two weeks after posting a tweet expressing solidarity with Gaza, condemning Arab and global inaction, and calling for an end to the genocide.

“T.M.” told Safa, “I was summoned by the state security apparatus, and I didn’t expect my ‘crime’ to be speaking out about the suffering of my Palestinian brothers in Gaza.”

He described being held in a tiny cell with the air conditioning set to extremely cold temperatures amid scorching heat, with intense lights constantly shining on him.

He continued, “The interrogators’ questions revolved around how much I was affected by the scenes in Gaza, whether I sympathized with them, why I sympathized, and what my stance was on Palestinian resistance.”

After a period of interrogation and detention, some entities intervened to secure “T.M.’s” release, but the authorities ultimately decided to deport him, forcing him to pay for his plane ticket and a security deposit of about $2,000.

The situation for Egyptian national “F.H.” was not much different. His “crime” was sharing videos about Gaza and the resistance on his Instagram account.

He said, “I was surprised when I was summoned by the state security apparatus about two months ago; I hadn’t broken the law or violated the rules even once since arriving three years ago.”

He added, “The interrogator greeted me with a barrage of verbal abuse before saying anything else, and then they placed me in a room where the air was first scorching hot and then freezing cold, with bright lights shining on my body.”

He continued, “I wasn’t allowed to raise my head in the cell; I had to keep my head bowed, and we were only given a small loaf of bread in the morning and another in the afternoon.”

However, “F.H.” was more fortunate than the others, as he only had to pay a fine of about $3,000 and sign a pledge not to commit any “electronic violations” before being released without deportation.

Some testimonies also mentioned cases of “enforced disappearances,” where some Arab residents were reportedly detained due to their solidarity with Gaza, and their whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

In May, a Ph.D. student at New York University Abu Dhabi was detained for a week before being deported from the country, according to the American Association of University Professors, after he wore a Palestinian keffiyeh and said, “Free Palestine” as he walked across the stage to receive his diploma.

Students from the university reported that the administration sent an email before graduation informing them that all “cultural attire,” including scarves, was banned during the ceremony.