Palestinian Community in the UAE Faces Great Dangers After UAE-Israel Pact: Euro-Mediterranean

Since the announcement of the UAE-Israel agreement to establish bilateral relations between the two nations, Emirati state-sanctioned commentators and social media trolls  have been eager to advance normalization on the popular level by restlessly praising Israel and relentlessly bashing Palestinians. More alarmingly, Emirati authorities are moving towards redefining criticism of Israel or the newly signed deal as “disrespect” toward the Emirati leadership – a crime that carries stiff penalties.

The UAE has previously carried out several arbitrary and unjust arrests against prominent human rights activists and university professors for social media tweets that may have implicitly criticized the country’s record on human rights

Palestinians in the Emirates fear they can be kidnapped and tortured, detained or even immediately deported from the country without sufficient notice if they criticize Israel, the UAE-Israeli deal, or even express solidarity with their families in the occupied territories. Especially given the fact that state-sanctioned Emirati commentators who are calling on citizens to report critics of the deal or Israel, are particularly and openly singling Palestinians out in specific.

There are alarming precedents that increase fear amongst Palestinians in the UAE. For instance, in 2010 the Emirati government deported large numbers of Palestinians, mainly from Gaza, without prior notice or even adequate justification.

There are currently around 400,000 Palestinians in the UAE, some of whom have lived and worked in the country for decades and contributed significantly to its current level of development.

Source: Euro-Mediterranean