The Black Fate of the UAE Looms

By: Eng. Omar Al-Ghabshawi – USA April 12, 2025

The UAE is going through a critical stage that may lead to a multi-dimensional legal and political impasse, with the spread of accusations against the background of its alleged involvement in the Sudanese civil war. Although the issue is still in its governmental framework – between Sudan and the UAE – its transition to the popular level, through Sudanese citizens with dual nationalities in the West, may open legal doors, just as it happened in previous international cases, which had consequences, long lasting and very expensive.

From Libya to the UAE: Lessons that have not been understood

The current situation reminds us of the Lockerbie case, in which Libya found itself in front of huge claims from the families of the victims of the 1988 plane bombing, which ended with billions of dollars in compensation, with Tripoli entering into a stifling political isolation.
We also find similar echoes in the case of the destroyer “Cool” in Yemen, which led to claims of compensation from the Government of Sudan.
Today, the data is repeated with the change of parties: the UAE is in the position of accusation, and hundreds of thousands of Sudanese around the world, who hold American, Canadian, European and Australian nationalities, at the position of the legal victim.
International law – specifically Western judicial systems – grants these individuals the full right to litigation against those who have caused direct or indirect harm to them, whether at the humanitarian, economic or security levels.
The potential consequences of the UAE’s investments, with its significant investment weight in Europe and America, have assets that can be tracked and retained in the event of court rulings in favor of the victims.
The nature of these assets – from technological and real estate companies to huge investment funds – makes it vulnerable to legal pressure through the so-called “Multinational Tort Litigation”.
In addition, popular and media pressure in Western societies will play a pivotal role in moving the file of these issues, as Western democracies play the role of a defender of the rights of their citizens, especially when it comes to crimes against humanity such as extermination, gang rape and ethnic cleansing. With the emergence of evidence.
Western governments will find themselves politically and legally bound to provide certificates, and possibly provide documents from their intelligence services or human rights organizations, which reinforces the prosecution’s position on these cases.

Civil cases: waves hitting relentlessly

if the case between the Sudanese government and the UAE is tough, its transition into the hands of the civilian victims makes it fatal.
These issues are not resolved by bilateral agreements or secret settlements, but are managed according to local law in each country, and are supported by civil society institutions, human rights lobbies, and legal pressure groups .
With the growing global concern about the involvement of Gulf funds in bloody conflicts, financial auditing companies and global financing funds will reconsider the ethics of joint investments with the UAE.
This has a direct impact on the credit rating of the UAE and its companies, as well as the sustainability and human rights indicators, which have become a critical component of investment decisions.

New War: In the courtyards of the western courts

The battle is expected to move soon to a new field:
The international and national courts in the West, where the Sudanese residing there have the weapon of legal nationality, the right to claim compensation, and for judicial accountability.
This will not be a limited or individual battle, it will be a large-scale campaign, linked by a common goal: to hold the UAE accountable for its role in the Sudan war. This will make the corridors of the Western judiciary a new arena for conflict, no less fierce than the battlefields in Sudan.

Conclusion

The UAE is on the cusp of an escalating crisis, not only political, but economic, legal and ethical. If these files are not handled transparently and fairly, they may find themselves stuck in a wave of international issues that are not obsolete, and can not be resolved by soft diplomacy.