UAE denies Briton arrested for wearing Qatar football shirt

The United Arab Emirates embassy in London denied Wednesday reports that a British man was arrested in the country for wearing a Qatar football shirt, saying he was in fact held for wasting police time.

It said Ali Essa Ahmed, described as a dual Sudanese-British citizen, last month reported to police that "he had been harassed and beaten up by UAE national football fans for cheering the Qatar team", at the Asian Cup finals.

The UAE and four other countries in the region are currently engaged in a political and diplomatic stand-off with Qatar after they accused the state of supporting radical and Islamist groups.

On its website, the Foreign Office warns travellers to the UAE of a June 2017 announcement "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".

The embassy said, "Police took him to the hospital where a doctor who examined him, concluded that his injuries were inconsistent with his account of events and appeared to be self-inflicted".

As a result, on January 24, "Ahmed was charged with wasting police time and making false statements", the embassy said.

"We are advised he has since admitted those offences and will now be processed through the UAE courts," said a statement posted online.

It said the British embassy in UAE had been contacted and "due process has been followed", adding that Ahmed speaks Arabic "and fully understands the situation he has put himself in".

"He was categorically not arrested for wearing a Qatar football shirt. This is instead an instance of a person seeking media attention and wasting police time."

The tiny oil- and gas-rich Qatar has been cut off by some of its powerful Arab neighbours - including the UAE - over its alleged support for terrorism.

Earlier newspapers reported that the man, named as Ali Issa Ahmad, 26, had travelled to the UAE for a holiday and attended an Asian Cup match between Qatar and Iraq on January 22, where he wore a Qatar shirt.

The Foreign Office in London said: "We are providing assistance to a British man arrested in the UAE, and are in touch with the local authorities."