Building the capabilities of its security forces, the United Arab Emirates held a marksmanship competition for hundreds of officers from the Abu Dhabi Police Department in March 2024.
The fifth edition of the Sheikh Mubarak bin Mohammed Al Nahyan Shooting Competition was at the Al Wathba-Al Haffar shooting range
in Abu Dhabi.
Nearly 200 commissioned and noncommissioned officers, men and women representing seven Abu Dhabi Police Department sections, competed in the four-day competition.
Brig. Gen. Hussein Mohammed Al Qahtani, director of the marksmanship and field applications section, noted that marksmanship is one of the most important skills police need to maintain security.
At another competition in neighboring Dubai called the UAE SWAT Challenge, the Dubai Police Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT), clinched the top two spots in February 2024.
Hosted annually by Dubai, the five-day SWAT Challenge draws teams from around the world. Eighty-seven teams from 48 countries, including five female teams, competed in this iteration.
Teams compete in tactics, assaults, officer rescue, scaling towers and obstacle courses. The competition aims to bolster international partnerships, cooperation, and the exchange of tactics and skills among participants.
The UAE’s commitment to police training has helped earn it top ranking in the Middle East and North Africa region on the Rule of Law Index published by the World Justice Project. The UAE ranked 10th globally, surpassing countries such as Germany, Canada and Austria.
The Rule of Law Index evaluates the status of many of the human rights enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It measures factors that endanger public order and security such as traditional crimes and political violence.
Sources: Al Bayan, Gulf Today, Abu Dhabi Police Department