Picture for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

A Sharjah Police hunt continues for the parents of a newborn baby who was found abandoned by the roadside in Sharjah earlier this week. Police said the baby boy was found in the Al Nahda Industrial area, near the Sharjah City Centre mall. The passer-by who found the baby alerted police. The baby was transferred to Al Qasimi Hospital where medics confirmed that the newborn was just a day old. Hospital staff said the baby is in good health. Under the UAE law, anyone found abandoning their child will be sentenced to a jail term. The sentence includes deportation along with the child if the offender is an expatriate.

What happens in the case of abandoned children in UAE?

In case of an abandoned child, a police investigation is launched to trace the parents. The case is then transferred to the public prosecutor of the emirate where the baby was found. Abandoned babies are treated as orphans and placed at government facilities run by the social services department. If the baby’s biological parents are not found, authorities will allow the baby to be fostered by Muslim Emirati families as guardians of the abandoned child. ICA/Expat Media
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