Philip Wood, QC - The Times "The relentless energy of the campaigners at Detained in Dubai continues to amaze as they take on one case of alleged abuse and miscarriage of justice after another. The organisation’s attention is now also engaged in countering the misuse of the Interpol notice system, including allegedly by banks such as HSBC Bank Middle East. Radha Stirling, the group’s chief executive, seems fairly blasé about the risks involved challenging powerful state bodie

Aggressive. UAE banks and their agents have been increasing debt victim harassment during the Coronavirus pandemic Around the world, governments, banks, landlords and utility companies are doing their best to alleviate the hardships suffered by people due to the economic fallout of long lockdowns and job losses. Rather than adopting this spirit, the UAE creditors seem to be increasing their efforts to harass debt victims. Detained in Dubai has noticed a significant increase i

Dechert lawyers sued for human rights violations over treatment of prisoner in UAE The London office of Dechert, a major international law firm allegedly crossed the line into criminal abuse and torture in their work for Ras Al Khaimah’s ruler, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qassimi; according to a lawsuit filed against the Firm in London today, naming two prominent London lawyers among the defendants. This claim was filed in the High Court of Justice by Jordanian national Karam Sad

The risks posed by the United Arab Emirates, once only a problem for visitors and expats, have spread over the past year to endanger even people outside the country. 2019 has seen an intensification of the UAE’s Interpol abuse and the extra-jurisdictional application of the country’s vague and invasive Cybercrime laws. Meanwhile, the routine occurrence of false accusations, forced confessions, and wrongful detentions have continued at pace. Notable cases during 2019, designat

Robert Urwin, released from Ukraine after 14 months over HSBC Interpol warrant “Thanks Radha for all your help, we couldn't have done it without you!” a jubilant Joanne Hazeldine declared when her father Robert Urwin finally returned to the UK, “We are all so happy he's home! Many thanks to all of you at Detained in Dubai!” In 2018, British national Robert Urwin was detained in Kiev over a bounced cheque case in Dubai. The cheque in question, however, was written and submitte

Former Iranian beauty queen Bahareh Zare Bahari is seeking asylum in the Philippines after being detained in an airport in Manila for more than a week over a Red Notice issued by authorities in Iran. The 31-year old has been studying dentistry in the Philippines for a number of years, and has used her relative celebrity as Iran's representative in the Miss Intercontinental 2018 pageant to speak out for women's rights and reformist parties in her home country. According to loc

Interpol under spotlight for human rights violations over abusive notices AFP to receive reform advice from Australian Interpol expert Radha Stirling in wake of criticisms over procedures that led to Hakeem Alaraibi’s arbitrary detention in Thailand. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have been widely criticised for notifying authorities in Bahrain and Thailand of Hakeem Alaraibi’s arrival in Bangkok. Following her advocacy in Hakeem’s case, Radha Stirling, an expert witness

Interpol under spotlight for human rights violations over abusive notices The announcement that Turkey will host the 2021 Interpol General Assembly meeting raises serious doubts about the organisation's integrity. Interpol has been under growing scrutiny over widespread abuse of its data collection process, with increasing incidences of abusive Red Notices being issued at the request of authoritarian states; with Turkey as one of the leading abusers. Lawmakers from the US, UK

When British citizen Robert Urwin was stopped in the Ukraine on an Interpol Red Notice, he thought it had to be a mistake. Subsequently learning that the Interpol listing had to do with a bounced cheque in Dubai twelve years earlier, Urwin was sure that there was a misunderstanding. He had left the UAE in good standing, with no debts and no payments pending on his bank account. The cheque in question turned out to be for an uncharacteristically large sum of money, and it had

Government to announce crackdown on foreign criminals as part of hardline new measures included in Queen’s Speech It was announced today that the UK will implement a new policy regarding the arrest of individuals listed on the Interpol database with a Red Notice. In the proposed measure, police will be empowered to arrest anyone whose name is listed without first obtaining a domestic arrest warrant by a British magistrate. Expert Witness Radha Stirling, who has led calls for

Emma Lewell-Buck MP raises Interpol Abuse in UK Parliament Emma Lewell-Buck MP was the first to raise at Parliament level, serious issues of malpractice within the international law enforcement agency Interpol. Legal organisation Detained in Dubai, a leading voice against Interpol Abuse over the past decade, has been working with Lewell-Buck on the Urwin case. “We have seen hundreds of innocent people either arrested, harassed, extorted or threatened with Interpol notices,” s

Robert Urwin, seen here with his grandson 67 year old Tyneside resident Robert Urwin has been held in the Ukraine after HSBC in the UAE wrongfully placed him on Interpol over a cheque he never wrote. It is simply incomprehensible that 67 year old British national Robert Urwin has been subjected to such horrendous treatment after leading international bank HSBC filed a criminal complaint in the UAE over a cheque that Urwin did not even have access to write. Mr Urwin’s wife and

Regular Interpol Abuser Qatar, funds Interpol project An Irishman’s nightmare began when he was arrested in Spain after Qatar had issued an Interpol Red Notice against him. When he met Interpol & Extradition Expert Radha Stirling this year, he had no idea what the Interpol notice could possibly be regarding. It turned out, he had been accused of committing a fraud in the capacity of “Director” of a Company in Qatar, for which he never was a Director and nor ever had access to

Today the Who’s Who of finance, investment, corporate law, intelligence and economics will descend upon Miami for the OffshoreAlert Conference, an event organizers describe as a gathering where “the good guys, the bad guys, the seriously guilty” congregate to network, share ideas and information, and learn to “operate more effectively in the world of high-value international finance.” Detained in Dubai founder and CEO Radha Stirling will be addressing the conference on Monday

We congratulate Hakeem Alaraibi upon his release from Thai custody, and the rejection of Bahrain’s request for extradition; and we salute Thailand for making the reasonable and humane decision to protect a political refugee from being returned to the persecution he fled years ago. There was never any doubt that Hakeem’s life would be in danger had he been sent back to Bahrain, and Interpol should have never allowed that country to request a Red Notice against him. The trauma

Detention of Bahraini/Australian resident and pro footballer in Thailand highlights Gulf state Interpol abuse and international cooperation issues. Australia needs to pressure Interpol to withdraw the politically motivated red notice, Thailand to decline extradition and Bahrain to withdraw their extradition request. FIFA has also been a strong financial supporter of Interpol and should use their own channels to pressure for the removal of the red notice against their fellow

Detained in Dubai CEO Radha Stirling released the following statement on the detention and potential extradition of Bahraini national Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali AlAraib: "Hakeem Ali Mohamed Ali AlAraib was granted political asylum in Australia last year following a thorough investigation into his claims of political persecution in his home country of Bahrain; yet today Mr AlAraib is being detained in Thailand because Bahrain is seeking his extradition. This politically motivated

British father of 3 Steven Williams from Wales, is stuck in Mallorca, Spain pending extradition proceedings to Qatar over an outstanding debt, despite having made consistent monthly payments. If Steven is sent to Qatar, he could face decades in prison. Like the UAE, Qatar has been increasingly misusing Interpol as an instrument for debt collection, though the international policing organisation has no remit to intervene in private civil disputes. Radha Stirling, a leading exp

INTERPOL’s global reputation been damaged over the last decade due to their negligence in allowing member countries to misuse the international law enforcement organisation. More specifically, serious questions have been raised regarding transparency, as Interpol’s top funders have proven to also be the leading abusers of its system. Interpol, as an international organisation, has largely escaped accountability through its complex setup and a level of inaccessibility that a

The UAE has come under widespread criticism in recent years for “treating Interpol as their personal debt collectors.” Whether it is a credit card debt, a personal loan or a bounced cheque in relation to a commercial or business transaction, Interpol is seen as a recovery tool by banks, government and the private sector. Detained in Dubai had the pleasure of announcing the removal of two Interpol notices for clients last week. In both cases, the reports should never have been