Imprisonment and a fine of up to 500,000 dirhams, the penalty for offending a foreign country

Youssef Al-Sharif: “The legislator restricted the issue of initiating the case in such cases to the Federal Public Prosecutor only.”

Legal Adviser, Dr. Youssef Al-Sharif, stressed that ignorance of the law does not absolve from legal responsibility, warning individuals of the penalty of insulting foreign countries, through social media, in any way, as the penalty for which is imprisonment and a fine of up to 500,000 dirhams.

In his definition of what is meant by a foreign country, Al-Sharif explained that what is meant by a foreigner is a person who does not have the nationality of the country in which he resides. He resides in the country.

Al-Sharif said, in episodes broadcast by "Emirates Today" daily on its platforms to shed light on the newly issued laws, that the legislator decided the penalty of deportation in some crimes, for anyone who does not hold the nationality of the state, whatever it is, his Arab, Gulf, Islamic, or European, American nationality. African, adding that the concept of a foreign country means that it is every country except the UAE.

He stated that the Emirati legislator in Article (28) of the Rumors Law decided to be punished by imprisonment for a period of no less than six months and a fine of no less than 100,000 dirhams and not more than 500,000 dirhams, or one of these two penalties, whoever publishes information or data on the network. Informatics, or any information technology means, that includes offending a foreign country.

Al-Sharif explained that publishing the information here is whether by video, audio recordings, written blogs, or the publication of any data whatsoever, but the legislator restricted the issue of initiating the case in such cases, to the Federal Public Prosecutor only, as he decided in the second item of the same article that “A lawsuit in the crimes stipulated in this article shall not be filed except by the Attorney General of the Federation,” meaning that no one may initiate such a lawsuit on his own against another person, but he can raise the matter to the Federal Public Prosecution, to be presented to the Public Prosecutor to take his actions.

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