Lebanese sentenced to 7 years for smuggling drugs to Dubai

A visitor will spend seven years behind bars and pay a hefty fine of Dh50,000 for smuggling and possessing five kilograms of amphetamine capsules that he intended to deliver to another man.

The Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the 34-year-old Lebanese visitor, W.A., of smuggling and possessing amphetamine for distribution. (more…)

Suicide from the world’s tallest building in Dubai

A man threw himself off the world’s tallest building in Dubai, its developer said, plummeting to his death in the first suicide from Burj Khalifa tower. (more…)

WikiLeaks to show Israel behind Dubai murder

The founder of WikiLeaks has said leaked US diplomatic cables, to be released soon, will prove that the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad was involved in the murder of Hamas commander Mahmoud Al Mabhouh in Dubai last January.

The statement by Julian Assange in an interview with Al Jazeera on Wednesday, proves what the Dubai Police have been saying all along, police chief Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim told Gulf News Thursday. (more…)

Dubai property prices may continue to fall, report

Dubai property prices may drop for the next two years, extending a decline in the Arabian Gulf sheikhdom that’s already cut values by more than 60 percent since the 2008 peak.

Residential values may fall as much as 20 percent more by the end of 2012 if new homes are built as planned, (more…)

Dubai World finalizes $24.9 Billion restructuring

Dubai World, the emirate’s state-run investment arm, said Friday that 99 percent of its creditors had agreed to the terms for restructuring $24.9 billion worth of debt, less than a year after the troubled conglomerate spooked global markets when it stopped paying interest on loans accumulated before the financial crisis. (more…)

Dubai plane crash kills two

Two crew members aboard an American ( United Parcel Services) UPS cargo plane are believed to have been killed after the aircraft crashed in Dubai today. (more…)

Dubai based Lebanese plans airline in Lebanon

Georges Mousa, a Dubai-based Lebanese businessman, will launch a full-service airline from his country in the next 18 months, subject to necessary approvals.

“The plan for the airline is ready. However, we will have to wait for the Lebanese Government to open up the skies for competition,” Mousa, who owns Dubai-based Planet Group, told Gulf News.

The name of the airline is yet to be decided. (more…)

Retrial begins for Egyptian MP accused in Tamim murder

A retrial has begun for an Egyptian real estate mogul accused of hiring a hit man to murder a Lebanese pop star in her Dubai apartment.

In his first trial, Hisham Talaat Moustafa was convicted of paying a former policeman $2 million to kill his ex-girlfriend, 30-year-old singer Suzanne Tamim, in July 2008. The two men were sentenced to death, but an appeals court ordered a new trial, citing incorrect legal procedures and insufficient evidence.

On Monday, both men pleaded not guilty. (more…)

UK to expel Israeli diplomat over fake passports

Britain will expel an Israeli diplomat shortly over the use of forged British passports by suspected killers of a Hamas commander in Dubai, according to the BBC. (more…)

Australia sends police to Israel over Dubai assassination

Australian police arrived in Israel on Wednesday to investigate identity theft of dual nationals in connection with the Dubai assassination widely blamed on Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. CSM