What life’s REALLY like in war-torn Dubai: The glittering tax-free influencer fantasy is unravelling as ex pats are arrested and treated as criminals for simply taking a photo of drone damage and sending to worried relatives

For years, Dubai has been sold to the world as a glittering, tax-free paradise where ambition is rewarded, luxury is normalized and street safety is all but guaranteed.

For hundreds of thousands of Britons fed up with rising crime, bureaucracy and the high cost of living, a sun-drenched, tax-free lifestyle has proven irresistible.

But now, as images of explosions, drone strikes, and arrests begin to spread, this discourse begins to crack.

Many people were shocked by the Dubai authorities’ treatment of ordinary people.

In recent days, we at Dubai Detainees have been inundated with cases of people being detained after sharing images of drone strikes and explosions, even if the images were sent specifically to family members only to reassure them that they were safe.

Some were inside the buildings that were hit, and although they survived, they were treated like criminals.

In some of the cases we covered, authorities then went to the buildings, requested access to residents’ phones and inspected personal content on-site. Those who were found to be taking photographs were arrested, even if they were not made public. They were then taken directly to the police station and the contents of their phones were wiped, erasing any evidence of the drone strikes.

We’ve seen ordinary residents caught up in this situation, including parents, workers, and those just trying to reassure loved ones.

Videos posted on social media showed a large cloud of smoke rising from the building, which local officials said had been hit by a missile on March 3.

At the same time, official messaging and compelling content continue to present Dubai as completely safe, dismissing concerns as exaggeration or misinformation.

For many, this now feels completely disconnected from reality.

People have been killed and injured, and residents have received warnings to ‘take cover’, sending them to seek shelter in car parks with their families. Claiming that Dubai is safe is nonsense. We’re fielding calls all day from people stuck in travel bans over trivial matters like landlord disputes and desperately trying to get to safety.

Arresting people who privately share images currently circulating on global media is not about security. Many foreigners who choose to stay support Dubai, but treating investors and business people as enemies of the state risks lasting damage to the country’s reputation.

All of this may be shocking, but the truth is that none of it is new.

The risks, authoritarianism and arrests have always been present, but the UAE response to the recent attacks has reinforced and exposed these, and people are now seeing this en masse for the first time. Many expats are trying to reconcile the country they once loved with a reality where survivors and ordinary people who mean no harm are detained.

They had a completely different perspective on Dubai, largely shaped by the actively developed influencer culture.

Last year, the state even opened the ‘Influencer Academy’, a school for influencers, as part of a broader strategy to recruit, train and encourage content creators to promote the city globally.

Influencers in Dubai post identical videos viewed millions of times highlighting the city’s safety

Socialite Petra Ecclestone previously cried as she described the explosions, describing how “grateful” she was for “how much Dubai prioritizes security” and “how welcomed and safe it makes us feel.”

Vicky Pattison (pictured in Dubai) claims the city is still “one of the safest places in the world” – as the Daily Mail finds out behind those flashy PR messages lies a more threatening reality

Alongside licensing systems and state-backed initiatives, it has effectively created a pipeline of influencers tasked with projecting Dubai’s carefully controlled image in a safe and inspiring way.

As I have warned before, this amounts to state-sponsored propaganda, a deliberate effort to cover up the truth on the ground.

Influencers don’t tell you that a negative review can land you in jail, that false accusations and rumors can lead to arrest, or that victims of crime are often silenced through pressure, payment, or threats.

Dubai’s safe and aspirational image is amplified by reality television such as Dubai Bling and other productions the city has invested in, creating a glitzy, aspirational version of Dubai that excludes the risks.

Scroll through social media and you’ll see it everywhere: infinity pools, supercars, ‘safe streets’ and the promise of a better life. Celebrities and high-profile entrepreneurs amplify the narrative, and many foreigners feel pressure to promote Dubai in a positive light.

You will not be able to see the legal realities, arbitrary detentions, human rights violations and even deaths in custody that lie beneath that polished surface.

For decades, the UAE has maintained a strict censorship system in which criticism of the government, institutions or even individuals could lead to arrest.

Once a tax-free paradise, Dubai lost its golden image as Iranian bombs rained down on the city

At the heart of the system are comprehensive cybercrime laws that regulate not only what people say publicly but also what they share privately.

Journalists, lawyers and residents have long been aware that speaking out carries risks, and authorities occasionally issue clear warnings, as we have seen in the Princess Haya scandal, Covid and now.

At the heart of this system are comprehensive cybercrime laws that regulate not only what people say publicly but also what they share privately.

Under these laws, actions that would be considered trivial in the UK can become criminal offenses in Dubai, from sending an abusive message and sharing a post that authorities later find to be false, distasteful or misleading, to posting a negative review about a company or a product or service, as in the case of Craig Ballantine, or even complaining about poor customer service.

There were people detained due to private WhatsApp messages shared between friends, spouses, roommates or colleagues. Others had faced legal action years ago for social media posts made outside the UAE, but were arrested on arrival, as happened to British national Laleh Shahravesh, who was detained in Dubai for Facebook comments she wrote years ago in the UK.

The scope of these laws extends far beyond Dubai’s borders. Posts made years ago in another country can still be used against you and expose many visitors.

And it doesn’t end there.

The system is also open to abuse. Complaints can be made by individuals, and once a complaint is made the process generally appears to favor the accuser. We’ve seen cases of people reporting others out of spite, combing through years of social media activity to find anything that could be interpreted as offensive.

In many cases, complaints are used as leverage and individuals are expected to pay to resolve the issue. Some paid tens of thousands of dollars just to have a case closed and a travel ban lifted. This is extortion.

No content that could harm the Dubai brand can be published by influencers.

Tourists and locals living in Dubai were seen struggling to leave Dubai International Airport

In some cases, particularly in relationship disputes, allegations supported by fabricated evidence still lead to arrests.

We are receiving more and more reports from female victims that their ‘handlers’ are threatening them with cybercrime allegations to force them to comply. Women know they can easily be imprisoned and feel there is no escape.

Many visitors may already be violating these laws without realizing it. For years, some have understood the need to tread carefully in Dubai. But many people don’t do this, and even those who keep a low profile, stay unnoticed, and watch what they say can still get into trouble.

But now, due to rising tensions and recent attacks, sanctions have intensified dramatically.

Those staying in Dubai need to be extra careful. The UAE is one of the most digitally monitored countries in the world, where VPNs are illegal and even private messages can be inspected. Authorities, including the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), work with police cybercrime units to monitor online activity and enforce strict laws on what can be said and shared.

In such an environment, social media becomes a risk not only in what you share, but also in what you have shared before and how it is interpreted. Dubai is not only harsh, it is unpredictable and people can find themselves in serious trouble before they realize they have done anything wrong.

It is unlikely that what will happen next will reassure anyone.

On the contrary, we will see more of these cases, not fewer. We have seen this model before. When there is instability, sanctions increase, complaints increase and more people are dragged into civil and criminal cases they never expected.

This has real consequences for Dubai’s economy. Conflicts escalate, people lose their jobs, debts are paid off and legal matters quickly turn into criminal cases, travel bans and even Interpol Red Notices. We saw this after the financial crisis and again during Covid.

Dubai is built on its reputation, and that reputation is now under serious pressure. If investor confidence shifts from opportunity to risk, reversing the damage will not be easy.