The Emirati authorities arrested the Lebanese Gynecologist Richard Kharat on Sunday over alleged offensive tweets.
The Lebanese Order of Physicians (LOP) confirmed on Tuesday that Dr. Richard Kharat was arrested in the UAE and that the Lebanese Foreign Minister, Abdallah Bou Habib, is following the case.
The Emirati authorities in Abu Dhabi have yet to officially announce the reason behind his arrest.
However, it was reported that the arrest was due to old tweets by the doctor in which he made jokes comparing Lebanese and Emirati family names.
Most pertinent would be his tweet in January saying: “The Houthis have vowed to the Emirates to bomb Burj Khalifa. My God, let this information be true.”
His tweet, which reportedly got him suspended, was deleted later on.
Since his arrest, different speculations emerged, including regarding a previous lawsuit against him over medical negligence that had led to the death of two children of the Lebanese journalist Nicole Hajal.
In response, the lawyer of Nicole Hajal, Carole Rassy, confirmed that she had indeed filed a lawsuit against Dr. Kharat, but confirmed that the case had nothing to do with his arrest in the United Arab Emirates.
