Dahi Khalfan warns people not to be led astray by ideology

Top Dubai police official said security in the gulf would continue to be immune to the events surrounding it.

Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim,deputy chairman of police and general security in Dubai, says “Security in the Gulf will continue to be immune to the events surrounding it.” Mona Al Marzooqi / The National
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Speaking on the sidelines of the Future Security of the GCC forum in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim said attempts by hostile forces to flex their muscles in the Arabian Gulf region would be foiled.

“Security in the Gulf will continue to be immune to the events surrounding it,” said Lt Gen Tamim, deputy chairman of police and general security in Dubai. “Individual crimes here and there in Gulf countries don’t mean that there is a real threat to the security and safety of these countries.

“I am confident that the outcomes of the GCC meeting prove that the GCC member states are united and in agreement about the steps and measures to be made to confront the ideologies and risks that surround us,” he said.

Referring to the Reem Island murder this month, he warned that people should be careful and not be led astray by hostile and destructive ideologies that appeared online and on social media.

“I’m certain she regrets what she has done for she must realise how she wronged her family and her community,” he said of the Emirati woman arrested for killing the American teacher Ibolya Ryan.

“But this case shows how people can be mobilised via social media that leads them to commit mindless actions.”

He stressed that the incident did not reflect the true image of a peaceful and secure Emirati society.

“Whether she wore the niqab or not isn’t the issue here,” he said. “The same crime could have been committed with someone impersonating a military officer. This does not mean we could prevent conservative women from wearing the niqab. Police in the UAE are highly competent and have uncovered and arrested gangs of criminals that were wearing masks when they committed their crimes.”

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