On 24 February 2018, Sheikha Latifa and her Finnish friend Tiina Jauhiainen left Dubai in a car and crossed the border to Oman. Two days later, she made contact with
Radha Stirling of
Detained in Dubai, notifying Stirling of her departure from Dubai. She also posted a few departing messages The following day, Sheikha Latifa, Jaubert and Jauhiainen, along with the crew of three Philippine nationals, were intercepted by Indian authorities while approaching
Goa on the U.S.-registered yacht
Nostromo,
call sign WDG9847. An investigation by
The Guardian and
Bureau of Investigative Journalism later revealed that on the same day,
Signalling System No. 7 protocol was exploited in an attempt to
locate Jaubert's phone. The Daily Beast's investigation revealed the FBI assisted the UAE to locate
Nostromo. On 9 March 2018, the
Daily Mail broke the news of the disappearance of
Nostromo and those aboard, after being contacted by Sheikha Latifa's representatives. She had made a 39-minute video before the escape attempt, to be released in case her life was in danger, Recorded at Jauhiainen's apartment, the video explains her family background and the circumstances leading to her decision to flee. In the video, she also accuses her father of maltreatment of her and her sister
Shamsa along with other serious charges, including murder. The Finnish
National Bureau of Investigation confirmed the disappearance of Jauhiainen and opened an investigation in collaboration with the
Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The brother of Jauhiainen confirmed her friendship with Sheikha Latifa. On 20 March 2018,
Nostromo was spotted at the port of
Fujairah in the UAE. It left the next day for
Sri Lanka with the released crew, including Jaubert and three Philippine nationals, on board.
Nostromo reached
Galle, Sri Lanka, on 2 April 2018. On 22 March 2018, Sheikha Latifa's companion Jauhiainen was found, prompting the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs to terminate its search in cooperation with the Dubai authorities. The location where Jauhiainen was found and details of prior events were not shared officially, but according to her family she returned from Dubai to Finland that night. According to
Detained in Dubai, a number of people were detained or interrogated in connection to the event in UAE and Oman, notably Christian Elombo, The notice was later retracted without notification or producing any evidence for the cited kidnapping charges.
Interception of the yacht Nostromo According to the testimonies of the crew, the yacht was being actively searched for by
Indian Coast Guard search and rescue aircraft SAR CG 782 on 3 March 2018. On the day of interception, the yacht was scouted by another aircraft. Before the raid on 4 March 2018, three marine vessels were spotted on radar by
Nostromo's crew, tailing it at a speed of less than 5 knots. Two of the vessels were later identified as ICGS
Shoor and
ICGS Samarth, described in media statements by Jaubert: "The two coast guards vessels had a huge marking on the side of the hull, which read '
Indian Coast Guard' and one had an ID number painted: 11". After sunset two unmarked speedboats carrying six to eight armed Indian
MARCOS Special Forces personnel in full military gear and
Tavor assault rifles were launched from these ships to intercept
Nostromo. The raid began with the use of stun and smoke grenades to disorient and incapacitate the crew, who were then handcuffed. After being taken over by Indian Coast Guard, the yacht was boarded by at least ten Emirati special forces personnel, who arrived by helicopter. Sheikha Latifa, despite
claiming asylum to Indian personnel and expressing a clear unwillingness to go back to the UAE from where she was fleeing, was forcefully taken away onto one of the ships. Further attempts of communication from those on-board
Nostromo allegedly failed due to jamming from an Indian electronic warfare aircraft. In total, at least three Indian and two Emirati warships, two military planes, and a helicopter were involved in the raid on
Nostromo, about 50 miles off the coast of
Goa. Jauhiainen and Jaubert made their first public appearance after the incident in a press conference arranged by Detained in Dubai in London despite alleged threats from the UAE government to stay silent. Following a period without mention in the Gulf media, in mid-April the
Western media reported the first reaction from the UAE, originating from an anonymous source close to the Dubai government. According to that source, Sheikha Latifa had been "brought back", was now "with her family", and "doing excellent". The source further claimed the incident had been a "private matter" that had been used to "tarnish the reputation of Dubai and Sheikh Mohammed," and said that three of those who had accompanied Sheikha Latifa were wanted in Dubai on previous charges. The
UN OHCHR Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance sought responses on allegations from the Governments of India and UAE.
Ad-Diyar, a mainstream Arab newspaper in Lebanon, published calls by Human Rights Watch raising the issue that Sheikha Latifa had been forcibly hidden. Support groups raised awareness of the campaign at the
2018 Kentucky Derby by flying a banner saying "DUBAI, WHERE IS PRINCESS LATIFA?". The UAE-controlled media began reporting extensively about the social activities of her half-sister with the same name, who serves as Vice Chairman of
Dubai Culture and Arts Authority. reported
show jumper Sheikha Latifah bint Ahmed bin Juma Al Maktoum as missing, due to similarity in names. The Indian government was widely criticised for its extrajudicial outreach, citing national interests and disregard of formal legal process. Indian media reported that Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and his advisers were directly involved in giving the orders for interception at the request of Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and didn't seek any formal request from UAE. An Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson claimed that "[n]o such incident has been brought to our notice." On 2 January 2019, Minister of State for External Affairs
V. K. Singh denied any involvement of Indian Government in repatriation of
emirati princess while replying to a question raised by
member of parliament Saugata Roy. According to
ThePrint, extradition of Christian Michel from UAE to India on 19 November 2018 was a direct result of Indian involvement in forced return of Sheikha Latifa as a
quid pro quo. Similarly, the Finnish government was criticised for not raising concerns about a human rights violation of one of their citizens to Indian authorities. A day later, the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Timo Soini, responded, saying Finland had been in correspondence with UAE and Indian officials about the issue outside of media.
Amnesty International, on 4 September 2018, released a public statement appealing to the government of UAE to disclose the whereabouts of Sheikha Latifa and uphold its international legal obligations, while also calling upon the Indian government to investigate any role of its security forces and officials involved in the raid on
Nostromo and unlawful excesses that may have been committed. On 6 December 2018, the release of the
BBC Two documentary
Escape from Dubai: The Mystery of the Missing Princess elicited the first official response on the matter from the Dubai royal court in the form of a brief statement saying that Latifa was safe at home. The documentary covered the escape attempt that Sheikha Latifa had spent seven years planning and looked into her sister Shamsa's attempt to escape in 2000. In January 2019, Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's wife, Princess
Haya al-Hussein of Jordan, half-sister of King
Abdullah II of Jordan, spoke in defense of Dubai's treatment of Sheikha Latifa. The matter was referred to the
United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions by
Guernica 37, a London-based law firm representing Latifa and her two friends. Chairman-rapporteur, Bernard Duhaime of the UN's working group on enforced or involuntary disappearances wrote to Dubai's royal family requesting evidence that Latifa was alive and the grounds on which she was being held captive or else they would have to make a public statement. In February 2021, a UN investigation determined that the princess was exchanged for British arms dealer Christian Michel, who was extradited from Dubai to Delhi to be tried for paying bribes.
Visit from Mary Robinson On 24 December 2018, three low-resolution photographs taken on 15 December 2018, showing Sheikha Latifa alongside
Mary Robinson, the former
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and former president of the republic of Ireland, were released by UAE authorities. According to Mary Robinson, the meeting was arranged by one of the wives of
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum,
Princess Haya. Robinson described Latifa in a
BBC Radio 4 interview as a "troubled young woman" who regretted making the earlier video in which she alleged abuse, and was receiving psychiatric care. The comments were criticised by various rights groups and Detained in Dubai's head Radha Stirling for reciting Dubai's official version of the events "almost verbatim". Human rights groups and associates of Sheikha Latifa questioned the nature of the brief visit, calling for independent investigation and assessment of her situation and disputing suggestions of any psychiatric problems and reiterating the possibility of her being held under captivity. Robinson later told the BBC that she had been "horribly tricked". David Haigh and Marcus Essabri, Latifa's cousin, commenting on the released photos of Latifa, stated that Sheikha Latifa appeared to have been forcibly medicated while held in Dubai under orders of her father, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
2019 court proceedings In December 2019, a UK family court ruled that, on the balance of probabilities, Sheikh Mohammed orchestrated the abductions of Sheikha Latifa and Sheikha Shamsa and subjected Princess Haya to a campaign of "intimidation"; the findings were published in March 2020.
2021 documentary Latifa was held captive in a private villa in Dubai after her attempted escape from her family in February 2018. In April 2019, human rights lawyer and founder of Detained International
David Haigh and Tiina Jauhiainen were able to covertly re-establish communication with her and began obtaining text and video messages from her. The communication abruptly ended on 21 July 2020 when Latifa stopped responding to messages. The
United Nations human rights office asked the UAE to present proof that Princess Latifa was alive. On 9 April 2021, the organization said that the Emirates stated that Sheikha Latifa was being cared for by her family but failed to provide a "proof of life" for her. A spokesperson also said that the Emirates had in principle agreed to a meeting about Sheikha Latifa between senior United Nations officials and the Emirati ambassador in Geneva. On 21 April, independent United Nations advisers said in a statement that they were "alarmed" that the Emirates had not provided any concrete information, and that the statement by the Emirati authorities was not sufficient. The United States response to the statement, which said that freedom from arbitrary detention was a universal human right, was described in the
New York Times as "muted". According to sources, the women who posted the photo were paid to do so. Some human rights activists asked the UK government to help.
2021 Madrid–Barajas Airport appearance In June 2021, pictures of Latifa at
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport were posted on Instagram by former Royal Navy member Sioned Taylor, who had also published photos showing Latifa in the Mall of the Emirates. She mentioned they were on a "Great European holiday with Latifa". David Haigh, co-founder of the Free Latifa campaign, stated that they were "pleased to see Latifa seemingly having a passport, traveling and enjoying an increasing degree of freedom", and confirmed that several campaign members had been contacted directly by the princess herself.
2021 UAE Pegasus surveillance leaks In July 2021, leaked data from the surveillance firm
NSO Group Pegasus spyware revealed that a list of
UAE-targeted phone numbers included numbers for Latifa and several of her close friends. Pegasus spyware allows full access, including GPS, to target phones, and may have helped to track Latifa's escape route. A mobile device belonging to the British human rights lawyer representing Latifa,
David Haigh, was also found to be compromised with Pegasus.
2021 end of #FreeLatifa campaign In August 2021, after Latifa had been photographed in public places in Dubai, Spain and Iceland, the #FreeLatifa campaign, which had lasted three and a half years, came to an end.David Haigh, co-founder of the Free Latifa campaign encouraged caution, saying: "It's quite right and understandable that everyone needs to look at everything that's happening now with extreme caution and monitor the situation closely." ==Controversy==