UAE drops death sentence for Israeli woman in drug case

JERUSALEM (AP) — The lawyer representing an Israeli woman convicted on drug charges in the United Arab Emirates says the UAE has canceled a death sentence issued earlier this year. The case was a potential test of ties between the two countries, which normalized relations in 2020. Fida Kiwan, a 43-year-old resident of the northern Israeli city of Haifa, was sentenced in April. Israeli media said at the time that Kiwan was arrested on March 21, 2021, with half a kilogram (over 1 pound) of cocaine that she claimed did not belong to her. Her Israeli lawyer said the death sentence was dropped on appeal. She still faces a potentially lengthy prison sentence.