Qatari intelligence officer reveals conspiracy against UAE

A Qatari intelligence officer revealed Thursday that Qatar’s intelligence services used fake accounts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to spread rumors and lies about the United Arab Emirates.

Tracking the accounts, the UAE security services uncovered they were linked to Qatar and they eventually caught Hamad Ali Mohamed el-Hamady, 33, who worked in the office of the president of Qatari National Security Shield, and was previously a close aid to Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani

In an report, published by Abu Dhabi TV, Hamady stated that he received a phone call from Bin Jassim, in September 2013, who gave him 25,000 Qatari Riyals and ordered him to head to UAE and buy five phone SIMs and charge them with 5,000 dirhams each.

The next day, Hamady drove back to Doha and headed to the National Security headquarters to deliver the SIMs.

The UAE numbers were used to create fake accounts on Facebook and Instagram, the report stated, including Bo3askor1011, which published rumors and lies about UAE.

“The digital department affiliated with national security was in charge of creating the accounts,” Hamady stated. He added that the accounts were used to attack the UAE, high rank figures and members of the royal family.

Hamady was also ordered to buy five Saudi SIMs, which, he believes, where used to apply the same plot in Saudi Arabia.

Hamady received 10 years in prison in 2015, after being caught by UAE security services. Four other high rank officers of Qatari national security also received sentences in absentia.

Hamady was then pardoned by the UAE president.