UAE says it has dismantled an Iran-linked terrorist cell planning to launch attacks

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates said Monday that they had dismantled an Iran-linked extremist cell "planning to carry out systematic terrorist and sabotage operations" in the UAE.

In a post on X, the UAE department of state security announced the arrest of at least 27 men whom it said had "held clandestine meetings both inside the UAE and abroad with individuals and suspicious groups."

They are accused of "spreading misleading ideas among Emirati youth, recruiting them for foreign-aligned loyalties, inciting against state policies, attempting to portray the UAE negatively, and collecting funds through unofficial channels to transfer to suspicious external entities."

A video accompanying the announcement showed several men being arrested by Emirati security services, including one being hauled out of a vehicle as it crashed into another one.