NAME: Abu Dhabi prosecutors have detained a member of their own ruling family after a video was circulated apparently showing him torturing another man.
Public prosecutors say they also have begun criminal inquiries into Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan's actions on the tape.
The investigation is the first reported of a ruling family member in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates.
Previously, Emirati officials had named Sheikh Issa as the man in the video but said the case was "resolved privately".
"The Public Prosecution Office has officially launched a criminal investigation into the events depicted on video and detained Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan pending the outcome of this investigation," the official news agency WAM reported on Monday.
"This is to ensure that all human rights obligations are met and enforced, that all national laws are applied equally and with transparency to all," WAM said, quoting a statement by the Judicial Department.
On 30 April, after initially dismissing accusations about the video, the Abu Dhabi authorities condemned the torture depicted in the tape and called an inquiry into the case.
The latest statement, issued on Monday, did not give reasons behind the change in approach, or the circumstances of the sheikh's detention. >>> | Tuesday, May 12, 2009
UAE Torture Recording Threatens to Derail Nuclear Deal with United States >>> \ Friday, May 1, 2009
