Electronic tags for criminals are to be introduced in the UAE, offering an alternative to jail for those who commit minor offences.
People found guilty of crimes carrying a sentence of less than two years and do not include mandatory deportation, such as theft and writing dishonoured cheques, could be put under house arrest instead of doing time behind bars.
The monitoring devices, also called GPS bracelets, track the location of the person wearing it.
The tag, which will be introduced after a federal law was issued in September, can be used for suspects on trial, those on bail and for house arrest.
Anyone convicted of the same crime twice will not be eligible and those linked to serious crimes, such as sexual and drug offences, will also not be included in the tagging scheme.
Prosecutors will be given the authority to replace police custody with house arrest.
Electronic tagging could also be used to reduce fines against defendants.
“If a suspect was found guilty and sentenced only to pay a fine, Dh100 should be reduced from the amount of the fine for each day spent wearing the GPS bracelet,” legal consultant Hassan Elhais, of Al Rowaad Advocates, said.
If the tag causes any health problems, the wearer can apply for it to be removed by lodging an official medical report to back up the complaint. If successful, the person will be returned to police custody.
Mr Elhais said that the law gave judges the freedom to decide when the tag should be used on a case-by-case basis.
It also grants convicts under house arrest the right to request to leave the country for some time, if they give their destination, reasons for travel and return date. If granted, time spent outside the country would not be taken off the suspect’s sentence.
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Prisoners jailed for between two and five years, who have already served half of their sentence, will also be given the opportunity to apply to serve the rest of their term under house arrest.
“The request should be filed to prosecutors who will determine the convict’s behaviour during imprisonment and if they pose a risk to community members or national security before filing a report to court,” Mr Elhais said.
If the request is rejected, the prisoner can apply again after six months.
Police will regularly visit the prisoner’s home to check the device and submit reports.
Detainees are also required to keep police aware if they want to move house or work.
“Some people who undergo investigation for a crime, but then are excluded after evidence shows that they were not involved, will certainly praise this practice,” Mr Elhais said.
He said the law would give a boost to members of the prisoners’ immediate families, who may be affected by their imprisonment.
“UAE laws are designed to punish the person who commits the crime and not those who surround him, like his family, and the GPS bracelet further boosts this principle,” Mr Elhais said.
It is not yet known when exactly the bracelets will be introduced.
The UAE is increasingly turning to technology to dispense justice. Just last week, Public Prosecution announced it was exploring ways to introduce artificial intelligence into legal proceedings.
In September, it was revealed that courts in Abu Dhabi are to allow trials to take place with the use of video conferencing in cases where it is inconvenient to bring defendants from prison.
Abu Dhabi Judicial Department said the move would speed up the judicial process.
Tagging already in use across the world
Electronic monitoring is used in a number of countries.
The system is widely used in England to monitor curfews and conditions of a court or prison order through a tag, usually attached to the ankle, which sends location data to a base unit in a place stated in the convict’s court or prison order.
In Italy, house arrest is commonly imposed on felons who are close to the end of their prison terms, or those whose health prevents them from being housed in a prison.
New Zealand uses it extensively to ensure that convicted offenders subject to home detention remain within approved areas.
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
MATCH INFO
Asian Champions League, last 16, first leg:
Al Ain 2 Al Duhail 4
Second leg:
Tuesday, Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha. Kick off 7.30pm
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mobile phone packages comparison
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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%3Cp%3E1.%20Protracted%20but%20less%20intense%20war%20(60%25%20likelihood)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E2.%20Negotiated%20end%20to%20the%20conflict%20(30%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E3.%20Russia%20seizes%20more%20territory%20(20%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E4.%20Ukraine%20pushes%20Russia%20back%20(10%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EForecast%20by%20Economist%20Intelligence%20Unit%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
