Rats nibble at UAE history

Abu Dhabi: The UAE lost 50 per cent of its rare documents as rats nibble at them in sub-standard warehouses across the country, the Federal National Council (FNC) heard on Tuesday.

The outcry came from Dr Abdullah Abdul Kareem Al Rayes, director-general of the National Centre for Documentation and Research, as the FNC discussed a law on the centre.

Al Rayes said that the centre keeps documents that date back to 1507 until 1971. "But we lost rare documents that date back to the 1970s and 1980s."

Officials found guilty of negligence and destroying classified documents face a prison term of up to one year or a fine of Dh1 million or both.