Dubai may have a reputation as an ultramodern place with an indoor ski hill, the tallest building in the world, and beautiful beaches, but for years the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, has been accused of abusing women — including his own daughters. Host Carol Hills speaks with investigative journalist Heidi Blake who produced “The Runaway Princesses,” a four-part narrative audio series for The New Yorker, which tells the story of Princess Latifa, who spent decades...

In 2018, Sheika Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, the daughter of the ruler of Dubai, attempted a daring escape to international waters, away from what she characterized as a dangerous and oppressive life among her family. She was captured and brought back to the United Arab Emirates, and though there have been public statements saying she is safe and content, her wellbeing has become a matter of international concern. Dana is joined by New Yorker staff writer Heidi Blake.

When the Sheik of Dubai’s daughters tried to escape their father, world powers turned a blind eye. But investigative reporter Heidi Blake was determined to document their plight. Writing for the New Yorker last year, Heidi unraveled the disturbing story of Emirati princesses Latifa and Shamsa, and how Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum crushed their bid for freedom. This week on Whale Hunting, Bradley Hope speaks with Heidi about reporting this story — now available as a new podcast, The...

Sheikha Latifa was born into incredible privilege as the daughter of the leader of Dubai, but she and her sister risked everything to escape years of alleged abuse at the hands of their father. Heidi Blake explores the story in her new podcast The Runaway Princesses.

With Madeleine Baran and Heidi Blake, Illustrations by Malika Favre January 23, 2024 Latifa was captured and returned to Dubai. Secret recordings shed light on her desperate fate. After Latifa was captured, her supporters heard nothing until one day, more than a year later, her friend Tiina received a message—a handwritten letter from Latifa, smuggled out of the villa where she was being held prisoner. Latifa’s supporters managed to equip her with a secret phone, which she used to make...

With Madeleine Baran and Heidi Blake, Illustrations by Malika Favre January 23, 2024 Aboard a yacht in the Arabian Sea, Latifa was briefly free. Then commandos stormed the boat. When Latifa and her friend Tiina reached the yacht Nostromo, for a couple of days it seemed as if their escape might be successful. But back in Dubai Latifa’s friends were questioned about her disappearance, and she and her co-conspirators feared that Nostromo was being followed. Latifa contacted supporters in...

With Madeleine Baran and Heidi Blake, Illustrations by Malika Favre January 23, 2024 After Princess Shamsa was caught trying to flee her father, Princess Latifa decided to make her own attempt. Shamsa’s effort to claim asylum in Britain was thwarted, and she was taken back to Dubai, where she was drugged and imprisoned. Latifa was just a teen-ager, but she was desperate to help Shamsa, who had been a mother figure to her. Latifa decided that her only option was to escape to another...

With Madeleine Baran and Heidi Blake, Illustrations by Malika Favre January 23, 2024 Why the daughters of the ruler of Dubai decided to escape his control. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, has been celebrated for modernizing the United Arab Emirates—espousing gender equality and promising to “remove all the hurdles that women face.” But the New Yorker staff writer Heidi Blake found that some women in the sheikh’s own family endured shocking mistreatment, and...

Heidi Blake is a writer for The New Yorker and the author of two books, From Russia with Blood: The Kremlin's Ruthless Assassination Program and Vladimir Putin's Secret War on the West and The Ugly Game: The Corruption of FIFA and the Qatari Plot to Buy the World Cup, with Jonathan Calvert. Her latest article is “The Fugitive Princess of Dubai.” “I definitely feel as an investigative reporter that I feel very driven by my own capacity for shock and outrage and genuinely feeling like this...

In 2018, Sheikha Latifa of Dubai made a daring attempt to escape her home country. Her plan was to hide in the trunk of a car, launch a dinghy, reach a yacht, sail to India or Sri Lanka, and then fly to the United States to claim asylum. But, in the middle of the Arabian Sea, a team of armed men stormed the boat and forced Latifa back to Dubai. The commandos had been sent at the request of her father, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates...

As the emirate’s ruler espoused gender equality, four royal women staked their lives on escaping his control. Heidi Blake, The New Yorker May 1, 2023

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? Infamous | A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.

Public outrage over Sheikha Latifa’s disappearance prompts Princess Haya, Sheikh Mohammed’s wife and Jordanian royalty, to get involved. But Haya has secrets herself, and before long, her own relationship with Sheikh Mohammed takes a dark turn. Infamous | A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.

Sheikha Latifa, one of Sheikh Mohammed’s daughters and Shamsa’s sister, escapes on a yacht with the help of her capoeira instructor and an alleged former French spy. When their boat is suddenly ambushed by Indian Special Forces, Latifa’s bid for freedom seems dashed. But she’s recorded a video that could change everything. Infamous | A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.

Sheikh Mohammed is the massively wealthy, seemingly-progressive ruler of Dubai, a glittering tourist destination on the Persian Gulf. But when his daughter, Sheikha Shamsa, runs away from his British estate, it seems that all that glitters is not gold. Infamous | A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.

Stacie and Alicia of the Trashy Divorces podcast discuss Princess Haya's escape from Dubai Stacie has the gobsmacking escape of Princess Haya of Jordan, whose decade and a half of marriage to Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, was heading south by the time he became embroiled in yet another scandal for kidnapping one of his 26 children. Again. Source: Trashy Divorces: Runaway | Princess Haya’s Escape from Dubai

Stacie and Alicia of the Trashy Divorces podcast discuss Princess Haya’s escape from Dubai Stacie has the gobsmacking escape of Princess Haya of Jordan, whose decade and a half of marriage to Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, was heading south by the time he became embroiled in yet another scandal for kidnapping […]

The abduction of a young woman from the streets of Cambridge is the origin-story of how Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai treats the women in his life The reputation of Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai has been tarnished beyond repair by the way he treated his wife Haya and daughter Latifa. At least we know about what they went through. There's another daughter - Shamsa - who was the first to try to escape the Sheikh's clutches. She, and her story, have almost vanished. The High Court recently found...

The abduction of a young woman from the streets of Cambridge is the origin-story of how Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai treats the women in his life The reputation of Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai has been tarnished beyond repair by the way he treated his wife Haya and daughter Latifa. At least we know about what […]

A high court judge has ruled that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum hacked the phone of his ex-wife Princess Haya using Pegasus spyware. In this episode we look at the implications of the affair. Earlier this year we brought you an investigation into the use of controversial spyware called Pegasus. As part of that series […]

A high court judge has ruled that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum hacked the phone of his ex-wife Princess Haya using Pegasus spyware. In this episode we look at the implications of the affair Earlier this year we brought you an investigation into the use of controversial spyware called Pegasus. As part of that series we revealed that the phone number of Princess Haya, the ex-wife of the ruler of Dubai, had appeared in a data leak of numbers selected as possible targets for...

A high court judge has ruled that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum hacked the phone of his ex-wife Princess Haya using Pegasus spyware. In this episode we look at the implications of the affair. Earlier this year we brought you an investigation into the use of controversial spyware called Pegasus. As part of that series we revealed that the phone number of Princess Haya, the ex-wife of the ruler of Dubai, had appeared in a data leak of numbers selected as possible targets for...

Two princesses from the United Arab Emirates show up in our leaked records – and we look at whether powerful spyware is being used against UK citizens In 2018, Princess Latifa, a daughter of Dubai’s ruler, made a bid for freedom. Together with a Finnish fitness instructor and a French former spy, she fled the United Arab Emirates. The Guardian’s Dan Sabbagh tells Michael Safi that at the height of the escape drama, it can now be revealed, the mobile numbers for Latifa and some of her...

Two princesses from the United Arab Emirates show up in our leaked records – and we look at whether powerful spyware is being used against UK citizens In 2018, Princess Latifa, a daughter of Dubai’s ruler, made a bid for freedom. Together with a Finnish fitness instructor and a French former spy, she fled the […]