Fears her daughter, 11, would be married to ruthless Saudi prince
A PRINCESS aged 11 was being lined up for a forced marriage to the notorious crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed Bin Salman, the court heard.
Known as MBS in the desert kingdom, Bin Salman allegedly ordered the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. And in January of this year, he was accused of hacking the phone of the world’s richest man, Amazon owner Jeff Bezos.
Princess Jalila’s’s father Sheikh Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, allegedly discussed arrangements to force her into a marriage with Bin Salman in February 2019, according to her mother Princess Haya, who said it was a key reason she fled to the UK with both of her children.
Bin Salman, 34, who already has one wife, was at the centre of international outrage after he was blamed for the horrific killing of regime critic Mr Khashoggi, who was butchered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.
Sheikh Maktoum strenuously denied the claims. His QC, Alex Verdan, told the court: ‘None of his children have forced marriages or were betrothed at this age. There has never been such a plan, a person to whom Jalila is betrothed.
‘There have been no forced marriages. That is not what this father does with his daughters – there are about 13 of them – at this age.’
Out of caution, the High Court initially granted an interim ‘forced marriage protection order’ to protect Jalila. But after months of hearings, the judge said the mother’s claims were based on ‘hearsay’ evidence that fell short of the required standard of proof, adding: ‘ I do not, in the circumstances, find this allegation proved.’