DUBAI AIRPORT IRIS SCANS HELPED NAB 75,000 IN 2009

DUBAI, April 5 (Bernama) -- Iris scan technology deployed at the Dubai
International Airport resulted in the arrest of over 75,000 people in 2009,
according to a report.

Dubai General Department for Residency and Foreigners Affairs
director-general, Major-General Mohammad Ahmad Al Merri, said those involved had
previously been deported from the United Arab Emirates on various grounds.

"And they were trying to enter again, but they were caught and deported
again," he told Gulf News.

Al Merri said the number of people arrested at the airport after undergoing
iris scans had gone up by 4,000 in 2009 compared to the previous year.

The newspaper also quoted him as saying that immigration personnel sniffed
out 1,200 forged passports last year.

Al Merri said immigration staff handled 12 million departures and 12 million
arrivals through the airport last year.
-- BERNAMA