Dubai: H.H. Lt. General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, has affirmed that the UAE continues to strengthen its global efforts to protect the environment, in line with the leadership’s vision of making international cooperation a key pillar in tackling cross-border challenges.In a post on social media platform X, Sheikh Saif said the UAE led Operation Green Shield 2026, one of the largest coordinated security operations targeting environmental crimes in the Amazon Basin.The operation, launched in July, was carried out in cooperation with Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Brazil under the International Initiative of Law Enforcement for Climate (I2LEC), which was launched by the UAE in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in 2023.Sheikh Saif said that over the course of 17 days, the operation resulted in 1,045 field operations carried out, 839 suspects arrested and the seizure of materials, equipment and assets linked to environmental crimes worth more than $280 million.He said these results demonstrate the UAE’s ability to transform international partnerships into effective, high-impact operations with tangible results.Sheikh Saif added that the operation was launched in response to the growing international need for stronger coordination among law enforcement agencies in combating environmental crimes.He stressed that the UAE remains committed to building a more effective global model to tackle environmental crime and protect vital ecosystems, describing them as a natural heritage for all humanity.
