LONDON
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Twenty-one people, including a 60-year-old British tourist, have been charged under the United Arab Emirates’ cybercrime laws for filming and sharing videos of Iranian missile and drone attacks, according to an organization that provides legal assistance to those arrested in the UAE.
The British man was arrested in Dubai on Monday under a law that prohibits the publishing or sharing of images that might incite panic or spread rumors, the organization, Detained in Dubai, told CNN.
CNN has reached out to the Dubai government for comment.
The United Kingdom’s Foreign Office told CNN: “We are in contact with the local authorities following the detention of a British man in the UAE.”
According to Detained in Dubai, the man was charged alongside 20 others as the UAE clamps down on people sharing videos of Iran’s missile and drone strikes on its territory.
The people were all charged on the same indictment, Radha Stirling, the CEO of Detained in Dubai, told CNN. Under UAE’s cybercrime laws, people who repost or even comment on a video can be charged.
“One video can quickly lead to dozens of people facing criminal charges,” Detained in Dubai said in a statement.
The British tourist, who has not been named, filmed a missile passing overhead but “deleted it immediately” when asked to by police, Stirling told CNN. He was then arrested, she said.
The penalty for breaching cybercrime laws in the UAE is a minimum of two years in prison, as well as a 200,000 UAE dirham (around $54,000) fine. Stirling said that multiple charges can be stacked.
The charges against the British national are “very vague,” Stirling said.
Detained in Dubai says the people who were charged “are alleged to have used an information network or information technology tool to broadcast, publish, republish or circulate false news, rumours or provocative propaganda that may incite public opinion or disturb public security.”
In a separate incident, Stirling said, an Indian student at Dubai University was arrested after he filmed a missile attack on Palm Islands. She said he had shared the video with his family group chat, and that he remains in custody.
She also said two French nationals had been arrested for filming missiles earlier in the conflict, but were released without being charged.
CNN has reached out to the French and Indian Consulates in Dubai for comment.
According to Detained in Dubai, plainclothes police officers have been arresting people seen filming missile strikes.
In an interview on UK radio station LBC, the UAE’s ambassador to the UK, Mansoor Abulhoul, said the “United Arab Emirates is very safe.”
He said: “The guidelines and regulations are there in the UAE to ensure people’s safety” and that the UAE was discouraging people from filming so that they wouldn’t be hit by “falling debris.”
Last Friday, the Attorney General of the UAE warned people against circulating photos or videos showing the sites of attacks, or inaccurate information that might cause panic.
Another government warning, circulated by via emails, text messages and public information announcements, said: “Photographing or sharing security or critical sites, or reposting unreliable information, may result in legal action and compromise national security and stability. Compliance helps keep the community safe and stable.”
And another warned people to “think before you share. Spreading rumors is a crime.”
In a post on X, the UK Embassy in the UAE said: “UAE authorities warn against photographing, posting, or sharing images of incident sites or projectile damage as well as government buildings and diplomatic missions. British nationals are subject to UAE laws, violations may lead to fines, imprisonment, or deportation.”
More than 1,800 drones and missiles have been launched at the UAE since the war began, the country’s defense ministry said on X on Friday. Six people have been killed and 141 have been injured.
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