Black Country football fan locked up for wearing Qatar football shirt to match in UAE
A Black Country football fan has been arrested and detained in the United Arab Emirates after he wore a Qatar national team shirt to a match.
Ali Issa Ahmad, who lives in Wolverhampton, travelled to the UAE in January and got a ticket for Qatar's 1-0 win over Iraq in the Asian Cup round of 16.
The 26-year-old Arsenal fan wore a Qatar shirt to the game – an offence punishable with a large fine and a lengthy jail term in the UAE, which has accused Qatar of supporting terrorism.
A friend of Mr Ahmad is reported as saying that following his arrest he was held over claims that he had made false allegations about security officials.
The UAE embassy said it was investigating the incident and the Foreign Office (FCO) said it was offering support.
The FCO website in its section containing information for travellers to the UAE warns: “The UAE authorities announced on June 7, 2017 that showing sympathy for Qatar on social media or by any other means of communication is an offence. Offenders could be imprisoned and subject to a substantial fine.”
Its advice adds: “You should respect local traditions, customs, laws and religions at all times. There may be serious penalties for doing something that might not be illegal in the UK.”
Mr Ahmad was granted one phone call on January 31 and spoke to his friend Amer Lokie.
Mr Lokie told a national newspaper that his friend sounded "very frightened" when he spoke.
“He just went to watch a football match while he was on holiday in UAE and says he was arrested and beaten after being accused of wearing a football shirt which promoted Qatar," he said.
"When he managed to call me officials were sitting next to him so he couldn’t say too much. He wasn’t given very long to speak to me and I’m not exactly sure what happened.
“It seems that he was released after being detained, assaulted by the security men in the car and accused of promoting Qatar. He went to the police station to report the assault and was accused of telling lies about the incident.
“We’re not clear about exactly what happened next but he has been held because he is accused of making false allegations against UAE security officials. He said he is being held in a place called Al Sharjar.”
Mr Lokie added that his friend's phone had been taken by officials and wiped, and that he had told him he was held in a small room for two days.
He said: “He said he would call us back but since then we have not heard anything from him. I am in shock that he was arrested and assaulted because of the football T-shirt he was wearing. We are all so worried about him. This is very serious.”
A UAE embassy spokesperson said: “The United Arab Emirates embassy is looking into allegations that a British citizen has been detained. The UAE is a nation built on the rule of law and respect for individuals. We take any allegation of human rights violations extremely seriously – whether it concerns one of our citizens, or any of the 1.5 million Britons who visit us each year.”
