Video of ‘fire’ on flydubai plane is fake – officials

A video that has been circulating on social media sites allegedly showing that the wing of a flydubai plane was on fire is fake, Dubai Media Office has confirmed.

The clip, which went viral during the weekend, claimed that the incident happened on a flydubai aircraft that was headed to Kuwait.

However, Dubai Media Office took to Twitter on Saturday night to dismiss the report as a false rumour.

“A video streaming on some social media sites that points to a fire on a flydubai plane during its trip to Kuwait is really just lighting on the plane’s wing,” it said.

“Users of social media sites are kindly requested to verify the accuracy before sharing and publishing such information,” it added.

The UAE has very strict laws governing the posting and sharing of “false” information on social media.

Under the UAE’s anti-cybercrime law, violators can face penalties ranging from imprisonment to fines reaching up to Dhs1m.

Read more: UAE tightens cyber crime laws

In May, an Emirati man was sentenced to 10 years in jail along with a fine of Dhs1m ($272,265) after he was convicted of “insulting the UAE and its leaders” on social media.

Read: Emirati faces 10-year jail term, Dhs1m fine for ‘insulting’ UAE

A man in Dubai was also arrested in July after posting a clip of a man crying at a Roads and Transport Authority customer service desk on social media.

Read: Dubai man faces Dhs500,000 fine for filming crying RTA client

Earlier this year, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) issued a fresh warning against sharing fake information via social media, urging people to verify the source and the news.

“Not everything you read on social media is true, some are just rumours that can cause harm to others or to the state,” the TRA said on Twitter.