Israeli police to be permanently based in UAE in historic first

Israel is setting up a permanent police presence in the UAE to tackle a surge in Israeli gangsters in the Gulf state, an unprecedented act of co-operation after the two nations formalised ties just a year ago. Members of some of Israel’s biggest gangs, such as the Hariri and Chaya families, are believed to be taking advantage of the thaw in relations to expand their crime networks in the United Arab Emirates away from the watchful eyes of Israeli authorities. The gangs – both Arab and Jewish – are said to be running increasingly sophisticated prostitution, drug dealing and money laundering operations in the Islamic country, which was previously off limits to Israelis without a second passport.