UAE Arrests Activists' Lawyer

Emirati authorities have arrested, Mohammed al-Roken, a prominent lawyer who has defended activists in the country, one of his sons told Agence France Presse on Tuesday.

"Police yesterday evening intercepted his car" as he went to search for another son, Rashid, and his brother-in-law Abdullah al-Hajeri, both of whom had disappeared near the southeastern town of Hatta, Salim al-Roken said. Salim, who was accompanying his father in a separate car, said Roken called and told them that "security services have arrested me."

"We haven't heard from him since," he said.

Roken has been involved in defending activists, including seven Islamists whose citizenship was revoked by UAE authorities for alleged terror links.

He had also defended five Emirati internet activists, who were sentenced to up to three years in prison last year on charges including insulting the Gulf state's leaders. They were released by a presidential amnesty in November.

The UAE, a federation of seven emirates led by oil-rich Abu Dhabi, has not seen any popular protests calling for reforms like those that have swept other Arab countries, including nearby Bahrain and Oman.

But the government has increased its clampdown on voices of dissent and calls for democratic reforms.