UN has asked UAE for proof Princess Latifa is still alive

The United Nations Human Rights Office on Friday asked authorities in the Emirate of Dubai for evidence that Princess Latifa Al Maktoum, one of the emir’s daughters, still alive, after denouncing that she was being held as a “hostage” in a village and feared for her life after trying to flee the country in 2018.

“We are concerned see the disturbing video evidence that arrived this week and we ask for more information and clarification about her current situation, ”office spokesperson Liz Throssell said at a press conference.

“In view of our serious concerns about the princess, we asked hera response from the Government is a priority question and we hope to receive and examine it soon >>Throssell said of the request for proof of life.

The videos of the daughter of Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, Emir of Dubai, as well as the vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, were recorded in 2019 and broadcast this Tuesday by the channel BBC.

The 35-year-old princess, under house arrest for almost three years, secretly recorded the videos for several months. but communications have stopped, according to the BBC.

“I’m recording this video from a bathroom because it’s the only room with a door that I can lock. (…) I am a hostage and this village has become a prison. All the windows are closed with bars, I can’t open any, ”says Al Maktoum, 35, in one of the videos.

“Every day I worry about my safety and my life. I don’t know if I will survive this situation, ”says the princess, who ensures that five police officers are watching the mansion from outside, while two others are inside.

Latifa first attempted to flee Dubai when she was 16, but started planning her most serious attempt in 2011., after maintaining contact with the French businessman Hervé Jaubert, according to the British public channel.

February 24 2018, the princess rides on an inflatable boat with Tiina Jauhiainen, who had been their martial arts instructor, and they sailed to international waters, where a yacht with an American flag awaited them.

Eight days later, off the coast of India, the ship was attacked by “commandos” who used smoke grenades, shot the two women and sent Latifa back to Dubai, of which nothing had been heard so far, according to the report published by the BBC.

The United Arab Emirates Embassy in London has claimed that the Princess Latifa She is “treated at home” and that “her condition is improving”, in a statement released on Friday.

“His family confirmed that Her Highness is treated at home, supported by her family and health professionals. His condition continues to improve and we hope he will resume his public life in due course, ”the embassy said.

In 2019, Tensions between the emir’s family reached British courts, when Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein of Jordan, sixth wife of the millionaire president, visited the UK and sought protection for herself and two of his children..

In this process, the High Court of England considered it proved, among other facts, that the sheikh “ordered and orchestrated the forcible return of his daughter Latifa to the family home in Dubai” on two occasions, June 2002 and February 2018.

“In 2002, the return took place from Dubai’s border with Oman, while in 2018 it was carried out with an armed commando at sea near the Indian coast.»Describes the sentence. The judge also points out that in August 2000, the Emir organized the “kidnapping” of his daughter Shamsa to take her from the United Kingdom to Dubai.

According to British media, The 71-year-old president was married to six women and had at least 30 children.

With information from AFP and EFE

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