Jumeirah, the Dubai-based luxury hospitality group, marked World Sea Turtle Day by releasing 23 rehabilitated sea turtles into the Arabian Gulf, including a green turtle named Foxy whose monitored return to the wild pushed the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project past a milestone of 100 satellite-tracked releases.
Foxy was rescued in January 2025 by a fisherman off the coast of Ras Al Khaimah after losing a front flipper. By chance, DTRP Ambassador Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi was in the area at the time and transported her to Dubai for treatment. After more than a year of specialist care at Jumeirah Al Naseem's purpose-built turtle sanctuary, she recovered strong swimming ability and was fitted with a satellite tracker before release.
The 23 turtles released were predominantly green turtles, alongside one hawksbill, many of which had undergone extensive rehabilitation for injuries including flipper loss, plastic ingestion and boat strikes. The Jumeirah Al Naseem sanctuary, featuring a direct-access lagoon with underwater caves and natural food sources, is designed to replicate wild conditions and help turtles recover instinctive behaviours before returning to open water.
Since its launch in 2004, the DTRP has rescued, rehabilitated and released more than 2,350 turtles, making it one of the region's most significant long-term marine conservation efforts. Tracked turtles have since travelled thousands of kilometres across international waters, generating data on migration routes, feeding grounds and regional population health.
Barbara Lang-Lenton, Executive Director of Biodiversity at Jumeirah, said every turtle released carries a story of recovery and provides deeper insight into the health of the Arabian Gulf's marine ecosystems.
Jumeirah's wider conservation work includes coral restoration programmes that have produced over 9,000 coral fragments in partnership with Dubai Reef, alongside parallel marine initiatives across its properties in the Maldives, Oman and Bali.
News Source: Emirates News Agency
