DUBAI – Dubai Customs has unveiled two new vehicles for its K9 Unit, timed to the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking and the UAE’s national anti-drug campaign, “Uniting to Eradicate the Scourge.”
The vehicles are part of a broader push to modernize the customs inspection system and strengthen the K9 Unit’s role in blocking drug and contraband smuggling at the UAE’s borders.
They include cameras that monitor the dogs inside their kennels, driver-attention monitoring, and thermal sensors that trigger alerts if kennel temperatures exceed safe limits. Dedicated emergency plates allow faster access to inspection sites during accidents or heavy traffic, and the vehicles are being linked electronically to Dubai Customs’ operations room for live monitoring of missions.
Onboard kennels are built for extended deployments, with independent air conditioning, automated water dispensers, feeding bowls, non-slip flooring, three emergency exits, access ramps, and storage for inspection equipment and a first-aid kit.
The unit has 28 dogs — 20 trained to detect narcotics and eight for explosives — handled by 24 officers, 20 men and four women. Field deployments rose from 341 in 2023 to 419 in 2024, then fell to 290 in 2025.
The K9 Unit operates from a dedicated facility with 54 kennels, five quarantine kennels, five training kennels, a veterinary exam room, training grounds and, with the new additions, six K9 transport vehicles.
Yasser Saeed Al Musallami, senior customs affairs consultant at Dubai Customs, said the fleet reinforces the unit’s role in border security.
“The new fleet strengthens our inspection system, speeds up response and supports field readiness, helping us stop attempts to smuggle prohibited substances while protecting society and the economy,” he said.
Fouad Al Suwaidi, director of the technical support department at Dubai Customs, said developing the K9 Unit goes beyond new vehicles — training, professional development and veterinary care are equally central to keeping the unit operational. He said Dubai Customs continues to invest in training facilities that simulate land, sea and air inspection scenarios, including sand, grass and indoor training areas, a veterinary clinic, quarantine facilities and hazardous materials storage.
