In one of the largest divorce settlements ever handed down by a UK court, Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum has been ordered to pay his ex-wife Princess Haya bint al-Hussein more than $728 million (£500 million).
The sum will be used to cover Princess Haya’s security costs for the rest of her life, as well as ongoing costs for the couple’s two children — Al Jalila Bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sheikh Zayed Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum — with a $333 (£251.5m) down payment due in the next three months.
The total settlement has no fixed value because the court ruled that Sheikh Mohammed must pay the annual security costs for his two children, ages nine and fourteen, for the rest of their lives or until a new court order is issued.
In his written judgement published Tuesday, Mr Justice Moor found that the biggest threat facing Princess Haya and her children Jalila and Zayed, is from “[Sheikh Mohammed] himself, not from outside sources.”
The decision was made in light of the Sheikh’s “campaign” of intimidation against Princess Haya, which included “his ability to use the Pegasus software, which is only available to governments,” to spy on the Princess and her staff, as revealed in court documents in October.
Details of the affair were discussed in court earlier in the case, including allegations from the Princess that she received a threatening phone call about it from Sheikh Mohammed at the time, leaving her “terrified.”
The divorce agreement concludes a years-long battle between the estranged couple, during which the UK high court ruled that Sheikh Mohammed used his “immense wealth, political power, and international influence” to bully and silence the 47-year-old princess.
A separate ruling issued in March 2020 determined that Sheikh Mohammed had previously organized the kidnapping of two of his daughters and forcibly returned them to Dubai, where he held them against their will.
The Sheikh has repeatedly denied all of the allegations in the case.
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