Does UAE controls what Imams say in the mosques and ban terrorist from the country?
Executive summary
The UAE exerts formal control over mosque affairs, including appointing imams, issuing sermon guidance and requiring licenses for lectures and fundraising through its Awqaf and emirate bodies [1] [2]. The state also criminalizes membership in groups it designates as terrorist and maintains broad counterterrorism laws and institutions aimed at preventing extremist activity [2] [3].
1. The legal architecture that governs mosques
Federal and emirate laws and administrative bodies place mosque management, imam appointments, sermon preparation and the licensing of religious activities squarely under government authority—Abu Dhabi’s Awqaf and Dubai’s IACAD are explicit examples of institutions that oversee sermons, imam education and mosque operations [1] [2] [4]. The law requires mosques and prayer spaces to obtain licenses before hosting lectures, Quran circles or distributing materials and gives state authorities responsibility for naming and managing mosques and setting prayer times, signaling formal, centralized oversight of religious speech in practice [1] [4].
2. Monitoring and content guidance in practice
Reporting and submissions from religious-policy observers note that the government regularly issues guidance to Sunni and Shia mosques and monitors sermons for politically inappropriate content, and in Dubai weekly guidance from IACAD has been sent to Shia councils as well—indicating active oversight of sermon content beyond mere administrative licensing [5] [2]. The translation initiative to publish Friday sermons in English and Urdu on state platforms suggests both a means of outreach and an additional channel for controlling approved content [2].
3. Counterterrorism laws and prohibitions
UAE law explicitly prohibits membership in groups the government designates as terrorist, with penalties that can include life imprisonment and capital punishment, and the state maintains a federal legal framework and enforcement mechanisms to investigate, freeze funds and prosecute those tied to terrorist activity [2] [3]. The UAE also runs counter-extremism institutions—Hedayah, the Sawab Centre and coordinated FIU work—to combat online propaganda, track financing and promote counternarratives, demonstrating an institutional commitment to excluding and disrupting extremist networks [6] [7].
4. How “banning terrorists” functions practically
Legal prohibitions on membership, freezing of suspected terrorist funds, prosecution and administrative removal or denial of positions in mosques constitute the toolkit by which the UAE bars designated extremists from formal religious roles and can deport or imprison suspects under counterterrorism and related laws [3] [1]. Sources describe counseling and rehabilitation programs as part of the criminal framework, indicating that responses range from punitive exclusion to reintegration efforts for those convicted of terrorism offenses [3].
5. Alternative perspectives and international criticism
Human-rights advocates and some international commentators frame the same centralized controls as restrictions on religious freedom and as potential tools for surveillance or political control rather than purely protective measures; Al Jazeera and civil society sources noted condemnation of UAE calls for foreign governments to control mosques, warning those measures could turn worship sites into security surveillance centers [8]. The UAE’s public diplomacy highlighting interfaith projects and tolerance initiatives—such as the Abrahamic Family House—complicates the picture by juxtaposing heavy domestic religious regulation with a global message of coexistence [6] [9].
6. Where reporting limits prevent definitive claims
The assembled sources document legal mandates, institutional oversight and counterterrorism statutes, but do not provide granular primary-source evidence on every instance of sermon censorship, individual removals of imams, or transparent lists of persons deported purely under “terrorist” designations; therefore, specific case-level conclusions beyond the documented legal framework cannot be asserted from these sources alone [1] [2] [3].
Conclusion: direct answer
Yes—under UAE law and administrative practice the state controls mosque administration and actively guides and monitors sermon content through Awqaf, IACAD and emirate bodies, and it maintains expansive counterterrorism laws and institutions that prohibit and punish membership in designated terrorist groups and enable the state to exclude or prosecute suspected extremists [1] [5] [2] [3]. At the same time, critics argue those controls can serve political ends or curb religious freedoms, while the UAE presents its measures as security and tolerance initiatives on the international stage [8] [6] [9].