His word against his

A London surgeon has been detained because an Emirati claims the surgeon used his middle finger. The surgeon denies it.

Arabian Business:

Joseph Nunoo-Mensah, a consultant surgeon at King's College Hospital, London, had his faces trial after he was accused of making a rude gesture at another driver, The Independent reported.

...

The British national said he was returning to Dubai when he was tailgated by a car flashing its lights. The stretch of road had a 60kph speed limit as roadworks were ongoing, he told the paper....

“I was trying to abide by the speed limit and couldn't move out of his way. I pulled over when I could but instead of overtaking us, he pulled up alongside… and drove in parallel with us for up to a minute. He was looking at me in an intimidating way – I was quite terrified,” he said.

“I raised both my hands to say, 'What do you want?' but he pulled and then took off and turned right. He alleges I stuck a finger at him but I raised both hands. I am sure he must have seen them at an angle, and that was offensive to him.”

Making offensive hand gestures is illegal in the UAE and can lead to a jail term.

Dr Nunoo-Mensah had his passport confiscated by police the next day and is now waiting to be notified of his court date.

Who can he used the middle finger? But I can tell you that in the UAE you should not. It carries the meaning, I am going to f*ck you -- meaning I am going to make you my woman. (Related: you're considered to be a homosexual only if you are the one penetrated.) If you don't challenge it, it means you acquiesce. In other cultures ignoring it means, instead, that you're certain of your sexuality.

That the tiff has gotten to this point can be inferred from the surgeon's name, Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (and photo). Racism plays a part.

Here's something interesting: he's the son of Ghanaian Brigadier General of the same name.