Dubai Ruler Confronted in London Over UAE’s Role in Sudan Conflict

A video posted on a Sunday shows a Sudanese man shouting at Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai and UAE prime minister, as the entourage walks through Knightsbridge. The protester accuses the Emirati leadership of “killing Sudanese people,” naming both the emirate and President Mohammed bin Zayed. An accompanying Emirati member of the group responds with racial slurs, escalating the exchange. The incident follows a recent meeting between Al-Maktoum and MBZ at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel in London, described by Emirati media as a “fraternal meeting” reflecting UAE unity.

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Although the United Arab Emirates publicly denies involvement, United Nations experts and U.S. officials have linked the UAE to arms transfers that sustain the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Reporting by Middle East Eye documents a network that moves weapons through Libya, Chad and Somaliland, and notes an Ethiopian army base used to support the RSF. The war, which began in April 2023, has been characterized by the UN as bearing “all the hallmarks of genocide” after the RSF’s capture of el-Fasher and subsequent atrocities.

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Western governments, including the United Kingdom, have been accused of failing to openly condemn Emirati participation, allegedly due to economic ties. Emirati academic Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, a former adviser to MBZ, criticized the “singling out” of the UAE, pointing out that the RSF also receives backing from Uganda, Ethiopia and Chad. Analyst Hussain Abdul-Hussain questioned the double standard of accepting Turkish and Egyptian involvement while condemning Emirati actions.

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British courts have previously found Al-Maktoum responsible for the kidnapping of his daughters Latifa and Shamsa and for a harassment campaign against his former wife, Princess Haya of Jordan. In 2020 a judge ruled he organized Latifa’s attempted escape, and in 2021 a senior judge concluded the UAE prime minister used NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware to hack Princess Haya and five associates.

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The UAE continues to deny any role in the Sudan war, while UN and human-rights groups call for transparent investigations into arms flows and alleged war crimes. No further official statements from UAE authorities have been reported, and the London confrontation underscores growing public scrutiny of the emirate’s foreign engagements.

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