[41] Despite a lack of oil, Dubai's ruler from 1958, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, used revenue from trading activities to build infrastructure.

[45] On 7 April 1961, the Dubai-based MV Dara, a five thousand ton British flagged vessel that plied the route between Basra (Iraq), Kuwait, and Bombay (Mumbai, India), was caught in unusually high winds off Dubai.

A flotilla of small boats from Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, and Umm al-Quwain picked up survivors, but 238 of the 819 persons on board were lost in the disaster.

[49] After years of exploration following large finds in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, oil was eventually discovered in territorial waters off Dubai in 1966, albeit in far smaller quantities.

[57] On 2 December 1971, Dubai, together with Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain, and Fujairah joined in the Act of Union to form the United Arab Emirates.

[60] Throughout the 1970s, Dubai experienced continued growth fueled by revenues generated from oil and trade, even as the city witnessed an influx of immigrants fleeing the Lebanese civil war.

[77] Record-setting flooding inundated Dubai in April 2024, demonstrating a lack of appropriate drainage to deal with the immense challenges precipitated by climate change.

The ruler, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is also the vice-president and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and a member of the Supreme Council of the Union (SCU).

[85] The Government of Dubai has over 58 governmental departments responsible for security, economic policy, education, transportation, immigration, and is one of only three emirates to have a separate judicial system independent from the federal judiciary of the UAE.

[95] Dubai is a notorious global centre and sanctuary for money launderers, drug lords, corrupt political figures, and sanctioned businessmen.

[103] Using their Emirati partners, the Kinahan family has established multiple companies in the Emirates to trade in clothing, textiles, and food, along with management in aviation consultancies in free zones.

The filmmaker explained in interviews how it was necessary to go undercover to avoid discovery by the authorities, who impose high fines on reporters attempting to document human rights abuses, including the conditions of construction workers.

[119] Freedom of speech in Dubai is limited, with both residents and citizens facing severe sanctions from the government for speaking out against the royal family or local laws and culture.

As part of the announcement, church President Russell M. Nelson said, "The plan for a temple in Dubai comes in response to their gracious invitation, which we gratefully acknowledge.

Dubai's Jebel Ali port, constructed in the 1970s, has the largest human-made harbour in the world and was ranked seventh globally for the volume of container traffic it supports.

However, the 2020 Data from the Centre for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS) exposed that several real estate owners in the city were either facing international sanctions or were involved in criminal activities.

Benefiting from Dubai's lack of proper real estate regulations, several corrupt people owned a house away from home, laundered their illicit money, and invested to store their wealth.

Names of some of such questionable figures included Daniel Kinahan, Alexander Borodai, Roman Lyabikhov, Tibor Bokor, Ruslan Baisarov, Miroslav Výboh, and others.

[192] Following February 2022, property prices in Dubai increased significantly, as wealthy Russians started investing in the UAE's real estate after the Ukraine invasion.

As of June 2024 the Emirate real estate developer Emaar Properties, announced plans to expand the 12-million-square-foot mall, for 1.5 billion dirhams ($408 million), adding a further 240 luxury stores, along with new food outlets.

In March 2022, Thai transgender model Rachaya Noppakaroon visited Dubai for her performance at the Expo 2020 but was sent back because her passport stated her gender as male.

[209] In another case, a French influencer on TikTok and Snapchat, Ibrahim Godin, was sent back from Dubai because the authorities assumed his male friend travelling with him was his boyfriend.

[215] The Dubai Expo 2020 was scheduled to take place from 20 October 2020 until 10 April 2021 for 173 days where there would be 192 country pavilions featuring narratives from every part of the globe, have different thematic districts that would promote learning the wildlife in the forest exhibit too many other experiences.

The Burj Khalifa's design is derived from the patterning systems embodied in Islamic architecture, with the triple-lobed footprint of the building based on an abstracted version of the desert flower hymenocallis which is native to the Dubai region.

[221][222] At the top, Burj Khalifa, the world's second highest observatory deck after the Shanghai Tower with an outdoor terrace, is one of Dubai's most popular tourist attractions, with over 1.87 million visitors in 2013.

[229] The Palm Jumeirah is an artificial archipelago, created using land reclamation by Nakheel Properties, a company owned by the Dubai government, and designed and developed by Helman Hurley Charvat Peacock/Architects, Inc.

The project is a joint venture between Dubai-based real estate developer London Gate and Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Franck Muller.

The New York Times described Dubai as "the kind of city where you might run into Michael Jordan at the Buddha Bar or stumble across Naomi Campbell celebrating her birthday with a multiday bash".

The venue is a 2000-seat, multifunctional performing arts centre that can host not only theatrical shows, concerts, and operas, but also weddings, gala dinners, banquets, and conferences.

[309] In 2019 the Italian artist Princess Bee produced "Hi Dubai", the first cross media format revealing the "soul of the city" through the life and work experience of 25 Emirati and expat women.