A female inmate has told of her heart-wrenching decision to keep her children a secret from authorities for fear they would be taken into care and separated.
The widowed mother of three, from Egypt, said her life was turned upside down when she lost her high-paying job and fell into debt after her new employer failed to pay her full salary.
She was evicted from her home in Dubai in June for failing to pay her rent and subsequently arrested after being involved in an altercation with her employer over the money she believed she was owed.
She decided to withhold details of her family, in the hope she would be released in a matter of days.
She is still in custody, pending trial on charges of assault and failing to pay financial dues.
The woman said her children had been alone at her new apartment in Sharjah for two months when she finally came clean to police.
“Since July last year my children were alone in the apartment," she said.
“They lived without power and when the water supply also stopped they used to go to a restaurant in the building to use the toilet.
Dubai inmates raise children in prison - in pictures
“I have been in the UAE for 10 years and used to work as a law firm manager and earned about Dh50,000 [per month].”
She lost her job and did not receive an end-of-service gratuity, with her troubles growing when she found a new role in November 2021.
She said she received her full salary only for the first couple of months in the position, receiving as little as Dh2,000 thereafter.
Mother thanks police for support
When the woman was taken to Dubai Central Jail in Al Aweer, she was afraid to tell anyone about her children living alone in the apartment.
She was concerned the siblings, who are 15, 12 and nine, would be separated if taken into care.
“She only heard about her children from friends outside,” said Brig Marwan Julfar, director of the General Department of Punitive and Correctional Establishments.
“She was afraid that if she told authorities about them, they would be sent to child care homes and her eldest son would be separated from his siblings.”
With a case against her still ongoing in the emirate’s courts and her hopes of being released fading, the woman broke down in tears and told officers about her children.
“She pleaded that we communicate with them and check how they were doing, and that we do not separate them,” he said.
The force contacted Sharjah's Child and Family Protection Centre and arranged that a Dubai Police female employee care for the children until their mother is released.
“Our humanitarian care section has also settled the unpaid rent and utility bills and is providing the children with monthly financial aid,” Brig Julfar said.
The woman is now able to see her children via video conferencing technology.
“I can’t thank this policewoman enough. I would kiss her head in appreciation for the care she is showing my kids,” she said.
“They are living a life now better than I could even provide for them.”
Lt Col Jamila Al Zaabi, director of the women's prison at Dubai Central Jail said efforts are made to provide assistance to inmates when possible.
“The goal of Dubai Police is to help them overcome their ordeals,” Lt Col Al Zaabi said.
She said the three children are now safe and regularly contact their mother.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The biog
Hometown: Cairo
Age: 37
Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror
Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing
Favourite book: Designing Brand Identity, Fifth Edition
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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Yorkshire Vikings 144-1 in 12.5 overs
(Tom Kohler 72 not out, Harry Broook 42 not out)
bt Hobart Hurricanes 140-7 in 20 overs
(Caleb Jewell 38, Sean Willis 35, Karl Carver 2-29, Josh Shaw 2-39)
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6.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m, Winner: Mayehaab, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
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7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,800m, Winner: Eastern World, Royston Ffrench, Charlie Appleby
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Madkal, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
8.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 1,200m, Winner: Taneen, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
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$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
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Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
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Sri Lanka v England
First Test, at Galle
England won by 211
Second Test, at Kandy
England won by 57 runs
Third Test, at Colombo
From Nov 23-27
Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
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