Security analysts in the capital plan to spend more than AED 400 million installing hundreds of new closed-circuit surveillance cameras throughout Abu Dhabi in response to the recent death of Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh in Dubai.

Experts predict as much as 90 percent of the main island will be covered by CCTV within the next 18 months. The additional cameras are being added to the main in-roads into the city, including Airport Road, Muroor Road, Khaleej al Arabi Street and the new expressway over Saadiyat Island.

With their face recognition and zoom capabilities, the new cameras – which resemble lamp posts – have caused some concern about privacy, but officials maintain that their concern is to deter criminals and keep the public safe.

“In two years, I think we’ll have at least 2,500 more cameras covering all over, with most of them specialised cameras used for watching critical infrastructure areas,” said Shihab Shaideen, the vice-president of strategic sales at Emirates Net Systems.

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