Dubai Police have warned spies operating in the Gulf to leave the region within one week or face consequences."Those spies that are currently present in the Gulf must leave the region within one week — if not, then we will cross that bridge when we come to it," Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim told Gulf News.
The statement comes following the January 19 assassination of Hamas commander Mahmoud Al Mabhouh, which Dahi has blamed on Israel.
The ultimatum indicates that Dubai Police are aware of the identities of spies operating in the UAE and the Gulf region and appears to be a warning of exposure if they do not comply.
Asked if the alleged spies are holders of European passports, the police chief said: "Europeans and others", but he did not respond when asked if he was also referring to spies holding Arab passports.
It is unclear if Dahi was referring to spies working for European governments or those who use European passports to spy for others.
Dahi also accused Israel of "vast falsification" of Western passports. "We discover false passports on a daily basis," he said.
Is Khalfan the Clown saying that he is allowing espionage to occur freely over the next week in the UAE? If he knows the identity of the spies, why not arrest them today before they cause any more damage?
Or is he busily planning his umpteenth press conference next week to announce the names of the "spies" that got away - a selection of Europeans who just left the country?
Khalfan - the Keystone Kop of the Gulf.