Dubai ruler posts cryptic Instagram poem after his estranged wife’s court appearance

Not long after a runaway princess came out of hiding, her estranged billionaire husband posted a cryptic poem on Instagram.

The estranged billionaire husband of a runaway princess who came out of hiding yesterday has posted a cryptic poem about “shining swords with sharp blades” on his Instagram page.

Yesterday, Princess Haya, 45, a wife of 70-year-old United Arab Emirates Prime Minister Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, appeared in public to apply for a UK forced marriage protection order.

Princess Haya is the sixth wife of the UAE leader. Picture: Tolga Akmen / AFP

It was the first time she was seen in public after fleeing the UAE with her two children earlier this year — saying she was “in fear for her life”.

As her shock reappearance made headlines around the world, self-proclaimed poet and ruler of Dubai Sheik Mohammed took to his Instagram page to post a poem about swords.

The sheik had previously published a poem that accused an unnamed woman of “treachery and betrayal”.

Called “Live or Die”, it included the line: “You no longer have a place with me. I don’t care if you live or die.”

However, his latest poetic offering is even more unclear.

“He has shining swords with sharp blades. In their sheaths, they can cut if drawn,” he wrote on his official Instagram page. “For confronting and keeping away the enemies, he has many soldiers. He has protected heroes so that nobody will conspire against them.”

It’s understood the poem may be a veiled threat directed at the UAE’s regional enemies such as Iran and Qatar.

The legal battle with his estranged wife over their children’s welfare will be heard by England’s High Court in November, a judge decided yesterday.

Princess Haya, a daughter of the late king Hussein of Jordan and a half-sister of King Abdullah II of Jordan, was in court for the proceedings, while the UAE premier was not.

The Princess has applied for a UK forced marriage protection order relating to their children, the hearing on Tuesday was told.

She has also applied for wardship of their two children and a non-molestation order relating to herself.

Sheik Mohammed has applied to the High Court for the summary return of the children to Dubai.

The preliminary hearing was held before Judge Andrew McFarlane, who presides over the family division of the High Court of England and Wales.

The hearing was held at the Royal Courts of Justice complex in London. After a previous hearing held in private in London, the couple issued a statement relating to the nature of the case.

Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum and Princess Haya bint al-Hussein during the opening of the World Government Summit in Dubai in 2018. Picture: Karim Sahib/AFP

“These proceedings are concerned with the welfare of the two children of their marriage and do not concern divorce or finances,” it said.

It said the preliminary case management hearing would “deal with issues relating to how to proceed to a final hearing to determine the welfare issues”.

Distinct from arranged marriages, forced marriages in UK law are those without the full and free consent of both parties.

A forced marriage protection order can be used to help someone who is being forced into marriage or who has been subjected to one, according to the Government’s official leaflet on the orders.

They can be applied for by the person in question, a relevant third party or anyone else with the permission of the court.

Applications must include details of how the applicant wants to be protected by the court, with the leaflet giving the example of stopping a person from being taken out of the UK to enter into a marriage without consent.

The case will be heard by England’s High Court in November. Picture: Tolga Akmen / AFP

Princess Haya left the court accompanied by her lawyer Fiona Shackleton, who represented Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, in his divorce from Diana, princess of Wales.

Sheik Mohammed is being represented by Helen Ward, who acted for Guy Ritchie in his divorce from pop star Madonna and for former Formula One motor racing supremo Bernie Ecclestone in his divorce.

The case is subject to reporting restrictions.

Judge McFarlane decided on Tuesday that only accredited journalists with media based within the jurisdiction of England and Wales were allowed to sit in on the proceedings.

Reporters from media organisations based abroad were in attendance but were told they could not hear the proceedings.