Lebanon’s ambassador to the UAE notified the ministry of the release of 10 Lebanese detainees who had been arrested there about two months ago, the ministry said in a statement.

The release comes after the death earlier this month of a Lebanese man who was detained in the UAE on unknown charges.

Similarly, UAE authorities have detained dozens of Lebanese, mostly Shias, in the past over alleged links to the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. However, Emirati authorities have yet to comment on the case or on the release of the other detainees.

Afif Shouman, head of a group of Lebanese families with relatives detained in the Gulf country, said seven Lebanese citizens remain detained in the UAE on similar charges and called for their release.

The UAE, like other Gulf Cooperation Council members, considers Hezbollah a terrorist organization.

In 2019, the UAE sentenced one Lebanese national to life in prison and two to ten years in prison on charges of links to Hezbollah.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online