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United Arab Emirates request consular services for arrested Telegram boss

The United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday it had requested consular services for Telegram founder Pavel Durov after the Dubai-based tech boss was arrested in France over alleged failures to curb crime on the app.

“The United Arab Emirates is closely following the case of its citizen Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, who was arrested by the French authorities at Paris-Le Bourget airport,” the Gulf state's foreign ministry said in a statement.

“The United Arab Emirates has requested the Government of the French Republic to urgently provide him with all necessary consular services,” it said.

French authorities arrested Durov, the 39-year-old billionaire founder of the messaging platform Telegram, late Saturday. He is accused of failing to curb the spread of illegal content on Telegram, which has more than 900 million users. The company denies the allegations.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday denied any political motives for the arrest as the technology entrepreneur spent a second day in custody.

Later Monday, French authorities again extended Durov's pre-trial detention until Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the investigation.

Dubai-based Telegram said on Sunday that “Durov has nothing to hide and travels to Europe frequently.”

“Telegram complies with EU laws, including the Digital Services Act – its moderation is in line with industry standards,” the company said. “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the misuse of that platform.”

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