My father has imprisoned Me: ruler’s daughter

Beirut A daughter of dubai’s ruler who tried to flee the country in 2018 said she is being “held hostage” in a guarded “villa jail” in secret videos she recorded a year after her escape attempt.

In footage shared with bbc, Princess Latifa says she’s been held against her will by her family since the yacht on which she was trying to reach India was intercepted by Indian and emirati commandos.

“I don’t really know if I’m going to survive this situation. The police threatened me that I would be in prison my whole life and I’ll never see the sun again,” says Latifa in a video filmed on a phone smuggled to her by friends, who are releasing the footage to increase pressure on authorities to free her.

The 35-year-old daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin rashid al-maktoum, dubai’s billionaire ruler, Latifa said the bathroom was the only room in the house she was able to lock and that she was under constant police guard.

The undated videos were reportedly filmed over several months about a year after her return to dubai, the bbc said. The recordings have since stopped and her friends are worried.

Her account contrasts with that of dubai’s royal Court, which said in december 2018 that the princess was happily back home in dubai.