Dubai Arrests Man Over U.S. Consulate Hoax Call

The consulate reopened on Thursday after closing to the public for security reasons on Wednesday.

Police in the Gulf trading hub of Dubai have arrested a man over a hoax phone call that led to the one-day closure of the U.S. consulate for security reasons, newspapers said on Friday.

The Lebanese-American was held on suspicion of calling police from a public phone to say that a Sudanese man, whom he accused of swindling him of 700,000 dirhams ($191,000), was "planning to do something" against the consulate, police chief Dhahi Khalfan was quoted as saying by Gulf News.

The consulate reopened on Thursday after closing to the public for security reasons on Wednesday.

The United States reminded citizens in June to remain vigilant to the threat of attacks after Britain raised its threat alert for the United Arab Emirates.

Several Gulf countries have faced attacks from Islamist militants angry over their close ties with the West, but there have been no major attack or political unrest in the UAE, a federation of seven emirates that includes Dubai.