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_WORLD WATCH______________________________
________________United
Arab Emirates______
American missionaries arrested
Christians tolerated, but proselytism banned
Three US missionaries have been arrested in the Persian Gulf city of Dubai for distributing Christian materials, including videos and music discs.
The three American citizens, along with a fourth man who had arranged visas for the missionaries, were arrested as they handed out material to passing pedestrians on the city’s streets. The English-language
Gulf News observed that it is illegal to promote any religion other than Islam in the United Arab Emirates, though non-Muslims are allowed to worship freely there—in contrast to harsh policies restricting religious freedom in neighboring lands such as Saudi Arabia.