DUBAI // The Dubai Court of Appeal this morning upheld a Dh5,000 fine against a 40-year-old tourist who insulted Islam during a conversation about the Taliban and called the Prophet Mohammed a terrorist.
AG, a Briton, appeared in the Dubai Court of Misdemeanours last May wearing shorts. He was sent away to change into more suitable clothing before he returned to the court to deny charges of insulting Islam and a Pakistani shop employee.
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"I told him he was crazy, but I didn't say any of the other things he claims," AG, who is staying at a hotel in Abu Hail area, said in court. "I spoke with him about the problems between the Pakistani government and Taliban, and when I understood from his responses that he was a supporter of the Taliban, I told him he was crazy because they were terrorists and they kill people and carry out bombings.
"I didn't say anything bad about Muslims and the Prophet."
AG was specifically charged with uttering a public insult, which is punishable by Articles No 9 and 373 of penal code No 3 for 1987.
According to records, AG visited the E-Max shop in Mall of the Emirates on the night of March 3. He met HH, 21, the salesman, greeted him and asked him where he was from.
When HH told him he was from Pakistan, AG responded that Muslims in Pakistan were not normal because they are killing each other and outsiders, records say. HH also testified to investigators that he told AG he was a Muslim and that AG's greeting to him – "namaste" – was Hindi.
"I asked him how I could help him, to end the conversation," HH said, adding that AG continued talking anyway and told him Pakistan would soon meet a bad end.
HH testified that he replied to AG that Muslims were peaceful brothers and helped each other. But AG retorted that he was crazy and that the Prophet Mohammed was not a peaceful man but a terrorist, records show.
"I walked towards him to hit him, but a customer who was present in the shop held me back," HH told investigators.
HH informed mall guards but AG had already left, records show. An Egyptian customer in the shop witnessed the incident, as did HH's Sri Lankan colleague.
On March 11, HH said he saw AG in the mall again and called security as well as police. AG was taken into custody. He denied to police that he had insulted the Prophet Mohammed.
Earlier in May, a new principal at Our Own English High School in Dubai was dismissed for allegedly making an inappropriate comment about the Prophet.
Ainsley Edgar, who had been at the school for three years, was said to have made the offensive remark as he interviewed a candidate for an Islamic Studies teaching position.
Although the incident was resolved as a "misunderstanding" and no charges were filed, he was removed because of the sensitivity of the issue, officials said at the time.
The court of Misdemeanours fined him on June 9.
salamir@thenational.ae
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"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
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Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
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9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
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