the first and only trial for arbitrary deprivation of citizenship in the UAE, where all defendants and their lawyer were arrested before its conclusion, people are deeply apprehensive about pursuing legal recourse. The likelihood of an unfavourable outcome for the defendants, coupled with the fear of reprisals, deters individuals from taking any legal action. Even though the majority of the “UAE94” should have been released in recent years, they remain in detention. At the time of writing, a significant number of them are being retried in what has become the second-largest political mass trial in the UAE’s history, commonly referred to as the “UAE87”78 for establishing and supporting of a terrorist organisation. During our interviews, it has been flagged to us that many more UAE citizens may have been deprived of their citizenship, including other family members of the “UAE94”. However, activists from the diaspora have reported that individuals who have no association with the “UAE94” are also being targeted by citizenship revocation. As these individuals continue to reside in the UAE, they are unable to openly address this issue due to the fear of reprisals. Like the “UAE94” and their family members who had their citizenship revoked without explanation, these individuals also face the same arbitrary and illegal treatment. The revocation is not disclosed in the Official Gazette, leaving them with no legal recourse to challenge the decision. As a result of this arbitrary infringement on their right to nationality, they suffer similar consequences affecting a wide range of human rights. This underscores the widespread nature of the issue, affecting anyone who expresses even mild criticism of the government. 3.2 Denial of identity document renewal Besides stripping individuals of their citizenship, UAE authorities employ another method to quash dissent, namely by withholding the renewal of individuals’ identity documents, thereby effectively placing them at risk of statelessness. This practice has been widely used by the authorities since 2011. The evidence and testimonies we have collected show that among the individuals unable to renew their identity documents are members of the “UAE94” who were tried in absentia because they were not within the country during the campaign of mass arrests. Aware that returning to the UAE would result in imprisonment for their peaceful criticism, they remained abroad. The UAE employs a similar strategy with most of them: upon their documents nearing expiration, the concerned individuals apply for renewal but are informed by authorities that they must return to the UAE to complete the process - which is not a legal requirement for the renewal of identity documents. However, knowing the consequences of returning, none of them have agreed to do so. The authorities thereby effectively hinder their ability to renew their identity documents, which puts them at risk of statelessness. Some individuals have attempted to send Human Rights Watch, UAE: Prominent Critics Face New Charges, 14 December 2023, https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/12/14/uae-prominent-critics-face-newcharges#:~:text=(Beirut)%20%E2%80%93%20Emirati%20authorities%20have,Human%20Rights%20 Watch%20said%20today (accessed on 2 May 2024). 78 19 Citizenship stripping in the UAE