DUBAI // The deputy head of Dubai police denied yesterday that the social media sites Facebook and Twitter are routinely monitored, saying that "we respect people's freedoms".
Speaking on the sidelines of the third meeting of the Security Education Programme, Major General Khamis Al Mazeina, said that recent media reports claiming the two websites were subject to round-the-clock monitoring by dedicated teams in Dubai and other emirates were "confused".
"We are not concerned with people's private lives and we do not routinely monitor people's accounts. We respect people's freedoms," he said.
He said the sites were subject to police monitoring only following complaints from members of the public, for instance if someone believed they had been defamed on the sites.
"The UAE law does not allow us to monitor personal accounts as it would be considered an infringement on personal freedom," he said. "But if there is a report which requires police intervention we will take all necessary action.
"It is then we start to investigate and demand access to the suspect's account and computer."
The media reports, he said, had become confused with the work Dubai Police carry out in monitoring chat forums. Such forums have been blamed in the past for allowing the sexual exploitation of children.
"We have internet police who follow these forums to ensure that they are not becoming a place for exploitation, blackmailing or to pursue someone through them," he said.
A team at the anti-electronic crime unit at the CID carries out this work by posing as contributors to the sites.
Earlier this month a media report quoted the deputy director of the anti electronic crimes unit at CID as saying that Twitter and Facebook were both subject to round-the-clock monitoring by dedicated teams in Dubai and other emirates.
However, Maj Gen Al Mazeina, dismissed the report. "There is definitely no monitoring but cyber police follow up on the activity of some websites," he said.
wissa@thenational.ae
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
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THE BIG THREE
NOVAK DJOKOVIC
19 grand slam singles titles
Wimbledon: 5 (2011, 14, 15, 18, 19)
French Open: 2 (2016, 21)
US Open: 3 (2011, 15, 18)
Australian Open: 9 (2008, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21)
Prize money: $150m
ROGER FEDERER
20 grand slam singles titles
Wimbledon: 8 (2003, 04, 05, 06, 07, 09, 12, 17)
French Open: 1 (2009)
US Open: 5 (2004, 05, 06, 07, 08)
Australian Open: 6 (2004, 06, 07, 10, 17, 18)
Prize money: $130m
RAFAEL NADAL
20 grand slam singles titles
Wimbledon: 2 (2008, 10)
French Open: 13 (2005, 06, 07, 08, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20)
US Open: 4 (2010, 13, 17, 19)
Australian Open: 1 (2009)
Prize money: $125m
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis