Princess Latifa: UN “very worried” about the situation and still waiting for “proof of life”

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The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said on Friday it had asked the UAE for “proof of life” for the princess, but did not receive it.

“We have no proof of life and we would like one. Clear, convincing proof that he is alive. And our first concern for us is to be sure of that,” spokeswoman Marta Hurtado said at a briefing in Geneva. “We tried to set up a meeting between senior officials with the new UAE ambassador to the UN in Geneva. In principle, the mission accepted these requests, but we do not have a fixed date yet.”

CNN contacted the UAE for comment.

In secret recordings obtained by the BBC and distributed to CNN in February, Princess Latifa claimed that she was being held hostage in a “prison-turned villa” without access to medical care. In response, the Dubai royal family said in a statement that Latifa is being cared for at home by family and medical professionals.

Hurtado told the briefing that OHCHR “will meet her ideally” and “will speak alone to examine all aspects of her situation.”

“That is what we will convey in this meeting, if it takes place,” she added. Asked why such meetings had not yet taken place despite repeated calls from the OHCHR, Hurtado replied that the question should be addressed to the UAE authorities.

Hurtado also said his office would “raise the case of Latifa’s sister, Sheikha Shamsa, to ask where she is.”

In late February, Latifa sent a letter – shared with CNN – to British police asking them to investigate the alleged abduction of her older sister, Princess Shamsa, in the UK in 2000.

“We are very concerned about both cases, because we do not know what is happening,” Hurtado said. “That’s why we don’t just wonder where they are, we want to meet them. We want to talk to them. We want to understand their situation, as is the case not only with these two women, but also with other cases of people who have disappeared or may have disappeared around the globe, “she added.

“We are looking at many cases, [on a] daily by people who have disappeared or about whom we do not know where they are. That is why we are here, privately, but just as well in public, supporting their case and expressing the fact that we are really very concerned about the situation, “the OHCHR spokesman concluded.

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