Princess Haya flees to London and ignites a bitter custody battle with Sheikh Mohammed. The court hearings put the spotlight back on Sheikha Latifa and Sheikha Shamsa’s abductions. But which of these women will end up free? Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. To connect with Infamous's creative team and gain access to behind the scenes content, join our community at Campsidemedia.com/join Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What is the context of Haya's escape?
We always thought that somebody might kill her. The guards would do things like put razor blades under her bed. I mean, it was horrific what was going on. So from that to her being in Madrid airport or being at a cinema outside of the jail, however long that would last, it was obviously a better situation than before because when she effectively went missing, we thought that she was dead.
David and Tina made a choice to end the Free Latifa campaign. Now, to me, that doesn't necessarily mean the Latifa is free. But some compromise may have been reached where she can travel outside of Dubai. There was also a picture of her in Spain. As far as Haya is concerned, it seems only rational to think that she was led astray in the Mary Robinson incident.
and that she either felt that she needed to defend the Sheikh's honor because that's what a good wife does, or, connecting the dots, she may have been fearful for her own children and her own safety. Regardless, the disposition of the court case seems to mean that she did get what she wanted. She is free. And the Sheikh?
He is the absolute ruler of Dubai, a descendant of the family that's been in power since it was a country of pearl divers, not real housewives. Everyone in the West benefits from his leadership. Europe, the United States, We need a force to combat Islamic fundamentalism in the Gulf region, and you could say that a capitalist, expat-friendly culture like Dubai functions as a spear.
But a German contractor reaping millions building multi-star hotels in Dubai seems to live a very different life than some of Dubai's citizens, especially some of the royal family's women. It's hard to feel bad for princesses, I know. But these princesses seem as though they want more than a closet of handbags. They want justice.
There have been more photos, more meetings with UN representatives, but questions remain. Despite all of the attention Latifa's escape received, no one has been brought to justice for attacking the boat near India, or for the treatment Tina and the rest of the crew say they received. Latifa's sister Shamsa, the one who ran away back in 2000, has still not been seen in public for decades.
And the thing is, there are so many more strange cases involving Emirati royals. Cases that have never really gotten any attention. For one, Sheikh Mohammed has another ex-wife who claims he kept her from her child. Randa Albana, a Lebanese woman who married him in the 70s, told the Sunday Times she hasn't been allowed to see their daughter since she demanded a divorce nearly 50 years ago.
Then there's Sheikh Mohammed's brother, the late Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Back in 2000, the same year Shamsa was allegedly abducted, her cousins, Maktoum's kids, were also living in England. They were in this giant rooftop apartment in the fancy London neighborhood of Knightsbridge, when all of a sudden, four Emirati bodyguards allegedly swooped in and escorted them away.
Their nanny called the British police. She thought they'd been kidnapped. In the press at the time, the incident was chalked up to a disagreement between the Sheikh and his wife over where their kids should go to school. He wanted them to return to Dubai, while she wanted them to study in London. But it all sounds eerily similar to Shamsa, her abduction, and her desire to study abroad.
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