DUBAI // A 49-year-old Emirati historian is accused of writing a letter addressed to a Muslim endowment body in which he included phrases that may incite hatred, heard Dubai Criminal Court on Thursday.
Prosecutors said that on May 25 last year, the historian and founder of Emirates Centre for Culture and History wrote the letter to Al Awqaf Al Jafaria, a religious charity foundation in Dubai.
The 25-page letter, which was singed and stamped by the defendant, was posted via social media and allegedly included phrases inciting the members of the Shiite Muslim community to form an opposition party against Al Awqaf Al Jafaria.
Prosecutors said the letter also included some political messages and that the members of the Shiite community are oppressed in the UAE.
The defendant denied the accusations and said he was a Shiite and submitted a proposal to the director of Al Awqaf Al Jafaria suggesting a Ramadan festival to gather members of his community with others from the Emirati community.
“It was a three-page proposal and three days after I sent it, I met with the director at a wedding, where he told me in front of 300 people that he will have me dragged to national security and have my passport dropped,” said the defendant, adding that he wrote his 25-page letter following this incident.
The next hearing will be on May 4.
salamir@thenational.ae