The ruler of Dubai, Mohammed ben Rached al-Maktoum, was ordered Tuesday, December 21 by the British justice to pay more than 640 million euros to his ex-wife and their children, which is considered as the biggest compensation in divorce matters granted by an English court.
Read alsoAlimony: CAF will now be able to replace bad payers
This judgment is the latest episode in a series of legal battles revealing kidnappings, boat leaks and computer hacks within the family of the emir of the strategic Gulf city-state. The 72-year-old leader, head of government of the United Arab Emirates, will have to pay 251.5 million pounds (around 300 million euros) to his sixth wife, Princess Haya of Jordan, 47, who had fled to London in 2019, taking their two children.
He will also have to make payments for their children Al Jalila, 14, and Zayed, nine, which could reach a total of 290 million pounds (over 340 million euros) to cover alimony and costs related to their security, according to a judgment of the court of family cases released Tuesday. The total amount, which includes tens of thousands of pounds for vacation or pet-related expenses, could vary depending on several factors, including whether the children come to terms with their father.
The most important financial compensation measures ever granted
These financial compensation measures are considered to be the most important ever granted in the context of the settlement of a divorce in English courts since the case of the ex-wife of Russian billionaire Farkhad Akhmedov, Tatiana Akhmedova. At the end of 2016, justice had granted Tatiana Akhmedova 41% of her ex-husband’s fortune, representing 453 million pounds, or 531 million euros at the current rate.
A spokesperson for Mohammed ben Rached al-Maktoum said that the latter “always made sure that her children were free from want“. “The court has now rendered its decision on the financial aspect and it does not intend to comment further.“, Continued this spokesperson, specifying that”He calls on the media to respect his children’s privacy and not interfere with their lives in the UK.“
“Threats of terrorism and kidnapping”
Making his decision, Judge Moor ruled that “given their status and the general threats of terrorism and kidnapping they face in such circumstances, (the sovereign’s children) are particularly vulnerable and need enhanced security to ensure their safety in this country“. He added that “the main threat they face comes from the (ruler) himself, not from outside sources.The High Court ruled in October that Mohammed ben Rached al-Maktoum, who has long had diplomatic relations with Elizabeth II and shares his love of horses with the queen, had authorized the hacking of his wife’s phone and those of his British lawyers.
It had not been proven that the piracy was linked to the legal battle between him in the United Kingdom and his wife to obtain the return to Dubai of their two children but a volume “Very important”Of 265 megabytes of data had been extracted from Princess Haya’s phone (either 24 hours of voice recording or 500 photographs). The judge stressed that the sovereign had “harassed and intimidated the mother before she left for England and since“And that he was”willing to tolerate those who act on its behalf to do so illegally in the UK.“
Read alsoMajor drug trafficker suspected extradited from Dubai to France
In March 2020, the family court determined that the ruler had “sponsored and orchestrated»The kidnapping of two of his children, Princess Shamsha and his sister Latifa, whom he had with another wife. Princess Latifa, who had tried unsuccessfully to flee Dubai by boat in 2018, said for a time that she was being held in “hostage” By his father. Last June, she said to herself “free to travel»Via his law firm. She had called on the British police to investigate again the kidnapping of her older sister Shamsha in 2000 in Cambridge, in a letter dated 2018 unveiled in February 2021 by the BBC.
SEE ALSO – Dubai: Lebanese expatriates to the rescue of their relatives back home