Dubai 'hacker' charged

Etisalat is the sole internet provider in the UAE

A computer programmer accused of sabotaging the internet network of the United Arab Emirates has been charged with misusing equipment provided by the state-run telecommunications company.

The charge, which carries a maximum jail term of six months or a fine, was the only charge available as the country has no specific laws governing hackers.

Dubai is the Gulf's commercial capital

The alleged hacker, named as Briton Lee Ashurst, was arrested on 14 June after internet users in the UAE complained of serious disruptions.

Mr Ashurst is suspected of being part of a gang of hackers who penetrated Etisalat - the sole internet provider in the UAE - causing it to crash for long periods over the past three weeks.

British embassy officials said they were providing consular assistance for Mr Ashurst, 21, who has been released on bail.

'Scapegoat'

The computer programmer's lawyer told the BBC he could not disclose exactly what his client had done.

But he said he was not responsible for the country's internet problems and that Mr Ashurst had been made a scapegoat.

The problems for Etisalat have embarrassed the UAE authorities and have given ammunition to local critics of the state's monopoly role over telecommunications.

The Dubai police are taking the case very seriously.

The local police chief, General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, has been quoted in local newspapers as saying that an example might be made of the suspected hacker to deter other acts of computer piracy.