In an interview with the UAE daily National, Tamim, regarded as the
leading security official in the Dubai emirate, said the project called for
the procurement and installation of thousands of cameras, Middle East Newsline reported. The general said
the plan would augment the current 25,000 security cameras in the city.
"We need to work according to a well-studied strategic plan and not only
react to events as they come along," Tamim said on June 20.
Officials said the Dubai security network succeeded in tracking
suspected assassins of Hamas procurement chief Mahmoud Al Mabhouh in January
2010. At least 32 people, said to have been agents of Israel's Mossad, were
said to have been involved in tracking and killing Al Mabhouh in a Dubai hotel.
"With the Al Mabhouh murder we were able to play back time through the
footage captured by cameras, and after going through 1,700 hours of CCTV
footage we were able to pull the strings together and identify the
suspects," Tamim said. "Sometimes we are lucky with cases, sometimes the
constant following up pays off, but what always works is our intelligence
gathering."
Tamim has helped lead a UAE project to bolster security amid threats
from insurgents and organized crime. The Dubai force, bolstered by advanced
technology, contains 16,500 police officers and another 4,000 administrative
staff.
"We are working on the security for each and every aspect of Dubai,
whether it's an environment security, commercial or tourism security," Tamim
said. "The new technology would allow police officers to attach a GPS
detector on cars through a special bullet, and we will then be able to
follow the car by satellite."