'Red lines must not be crossed' -Dubai Police

The Deputy Chief of Dubai's police force has said it does not intend to limit the freedoms of UAE's diverse population,but added that "red lines must not be crossed".

Major General Khamis Mattar al-Mazeina told UAE daily Gulf News that is not the duty of police to interrogate or interfere with couples in Dubai - unless they are spotted committing obscene actions.

"I think it is clear to the average person what is meant by obscene. The country has its values and traditions which cannot be overlooked to satisfy others."

Dubai is known for having the most liberal and flexible police force of the six emirates in the UAE, but its police recently convicted a British couple for trampling through the red lines, and having sex on a public beach.

Mazeina denied that rising crime in the emirate had anything to do with the financial crisis, and attempted to quash persistent rumours that Chechen commander Sulim Yamadayev who was shot in March in the car park of an apartment block in Dubai is still alive.

The police deputy also repeated the denial that Somali pirates' money is being laundered through Dubai.

Some media want to tarnish the image of the UAE by spreading vicious rumours, he claimed.