Dubai to police without policemen in new tech initiative that includes surveillance blimp

Dubai Police are reassigning police officers to fewer administrative and procedural tasks across the emirate in favor of scaled up operations backed by advanced technology to boost human surveillance, the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) announced, Monday, that

A new initiative called “Police without Policemen” is part of the Dubai 10X plan, which targets to position Dubai a decade ahead of all other cities in the world according to Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of DFF,

The initiative includes setting up fixed cameras on fences and homes, to ensure the security and safety of the community through a combination of crowdsourcing and deployment of advanced technologies.

A second measure will include the operation of a surveillance blimp as an airborne early warning control system that oversees open spaces and projects under construction.

A third measure dubbed ‘Station on Patrol’ aims to provide rapid response to emergencies and replace the need to build traditional police stations.

General Abdullah al-Merri, Dubai Police Commander-in-Chief, said that new technology will mean higher levels of safety.

“With these projects we are bringing to reality the concept of no-officers policing,” General al-Merri said in a statement.

“Through these projects, we aim to strengthen our partnership with the community to strengthen safety and security standards, and respond promptly to any challenges, and ensure the happiness of our citizens and residents,” the Commander-in-Chief added.

“Sometimes in traditional policing measures, valuable time is lost in identifying and arresting criminals. However, with the disruptive innovation that we propose through our new projects that deploy the latest technologies, we aim to scale up operational efficiency,” he said.