The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven emirates that tightly controls speech and where political parties are illegal. The tiny Gulf state is home to 10 million people of whom just 10 percent are Emirati citizens. The UAE has recently made international new when it deported a Palestinian telecom engineer, identified as S.M., after living in the UAE for 20 years, following a casual comment during a celebration at a government agency in Abu Dhabi in which he refused to drink Pepsi, saying: "Boycott."

According to informed sources quoted by Sunna Files, the Palestinian engineer was summoned to a security agency in Abu Dhabi just two days after the incident and informed that he had to leave the country within days. This forced him to liquidate his business and withdraw his children from their schools before leaving for Jordan with a temporary passport.

UAE's repressive measures against free speech supersede those of Israel and US

Emirati security agencies have tightened surveillance of Arab and Palestinian communities, banning even the smallest symbols of solidarity — from wearing the Palestinian keffiyeh to displaying the Palestinian flag in homes or cars. Some residents have even been warned not to keep images of Palestine’s map on their phones or walls, fearing accusations of “sympathizing with hostile entities.”

University student who yelled "Free Palestine" deported by Abu Dhabi

At the recent Abu Dhabi Comedy Festival, an AP journalist saw security guards stop people from entering the event unless they removed their keffiyehs and handed them over. However, one woman shouted, “Free Palestine,” during a set by American comedian Dave Chappelle who called what was happening in Gaza a “genocide.” The female student was kicked out of the country without any due of process of law.

Malak Harb reported for the AP on July 10, 2024 that during a graduation ceremony of New York University in Abu Dhabi this May, a student wearing the traditional Palestinian black-and-white keffiyeh scarf shouted, “Free Palestine!” as he crossed the stage to receive his diploma, witnesses say. Days later, he reportedly was deported from the United Arab Emirates.

The Palestinian engineer’s story is just one of many examples of intensifying repression targeting Palestinians and Arabs in the UAE since the Gaza war erupted in October 2023.

In another case, a Palestinian woman in Dubai was given just 48 hours to leave the country after posting a simple obituary on Instagram mourning her relative — a journalist martyred in Gaza.

Some residents have even been warned not to keep images of Palestine’s map on their phones or walls, fearing accusations of “sympathizing with hostile entities.”

A Palestinian woman from Gaza who holds a UAE residency was interrogated at Dubai airport upon returning during the war after surviving Israeli bombings. According to the news source, the interrogation lasted for hours, during which officials searched her phone and reviewed her WhatsApp, Telegram, and social media chats.

In another case, an Arab woman working at a private school in Abu Dhabi was summoned for questioning and asked to serve as an informant, monitoring her colleagues’ political views in exchange for being allowed to stay. When she refused, she was told she would be deported immediately.

These reports according to the newspaper indicate that the UAE authorities are not merely monitoring but are attempting to recruit residents into domestic surveillance networks across the education and private sectors.

Human rights observers describe the situation as a blatant violation of international standards for freedom of expression, revealing a political atmosphere so suffocating that even human compassion toward Gaza’s suffering is criminalized.

UAE has a long history of pro-Israeli and anti-Muslim agenda

* UAE military pilots are trained in Israel and some have taken part in bombing targets in Gaza, per Yedioth Ahronoth.

* UAE provided Israel with fruits and vegetables during the two years' war on Gaza.

* Israeli citizens living or visiting the UAE are exempt from persecution, taxes, and custom duty.

* UAE provided a safe haven for Fatah Central Committee member Muhmmad Dahlan after a Palestinian commission of inquiry has concluded that was involved in the “poisoning” of former Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat.

* UAE paid for the vacation expenses of IDF soldiers during the war.

* UAE designated the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as foreign terrorist organizations.

* UAE was behind the military coup that brought down Mohamed Morsi, who was the only democratically president in Egypt.

* UAE was the architect of the failed coup attempts in Turkey and Qatar.

* UAE blocked Qatar during the holy month of Ramadan.

* A Syrian imam who was jailed and deported from UAE right after praying for Gaza in the mosque he was leading.

* UAE and 8 other regional nations bombed Yemen for over 7 years that left thousands of civilians dead or injured and devastated before a surprise deal was reached in March 2023.

* UAE sent African and Latin American mercenaries who committed rape and murder in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Libya, and Sudan.

* UAE funded the French military campaign in Mali with weapons and money where mosques were bombed and women raped.

* Dubai is getting ready to open the Gulf's first large-scale brewery as a Heineken plan to start producing popular beer brands in the UAE. Construction is set for completion in 2027.

In such a climate, the UAE now stands exposed as a land of silenced voices and coerced conformity where even a whisper of human solidarity with the victims of genocide in Gaza or refusing to drink Pepsi has become a punishable act.

Mahmoud El-Youseph is a Palestinian freelance writer and retired U.S. Air Force veteran. He writes on U.S. foreign policy, Middle East affairs, and justice. Email: elyousseph6@yahoo.com