Brits stranded in Dubai insist the city is safe, but critics say they’re terrified to speak the truth for one £200,000 reason

Brits stranded in Dubai are publicly insisting the city remains safe despite escalating regional tensions, even as critics argue strict UAE laws may be shaping what residents are willing to say in public. As reported by Daily Express UK, the gap between official calm and private fear has become a central part of the fallout.

Several public figures and content creators have described life in Dubai as calm despite the surrounding conflict. Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison said reports that the city was “being bombed” were “hyperbolic,” while former Apprentice contestant Luisa Zissman, who lives in Dubai with her family, called it “the safest country in the world.”

Even so, some of those reassurances have come with caveats. Zissman said she had heard explosions and was preparing her basement for emergencies, while former Love Islander Laura Anderson, who flew to Edinburgh with her two-year-old daughter, praised UAE officials for their response and said British expats deserved empathy.

The public calm comes with an obvious limit

Critics on social media say many residents are reluctant to speak openly because UAE law allows severe penalties for comments seen as damaging the country’s reputation. Those penalties can reportedly include fines of up to £200,000, prison terms of up to five years, and deportation.

One content creator said people are “scared to say anything negative,” adding that influencers with large audiences know they are being watched. The concern has grown as the wider conflict has intensified, including the Ukrainian drone request.

The regional backdrop has become harder to ignore. Iranian missiles and suicide drones have targeted the UAE in retaliation after reported U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, disrupting major airports and leaving some British travelers stranded while they searched for flights out.

Dubai officials responded quickly after the first retaliatory missile strikes. The Dubai Media Office said outdated images were being circulated to spread fear and warned that legal action would be taken against people who published or republished such material in violation of UAE law.

Local reporting has echoed that message, describing parts of Dubai as operating normally with no visible signs of panic. That official line has held even as Kurdish offensive discussions added to uncertainty around the wider conflict.

The result is a difficult position for residents and visitors trying to navigate a live regional crisis under strict speech rules. Publicly, many continue to describe Dubai as safe, while privately the threat of legal punishment appears to be shaping how much they are willing to say.