Dubai Ruler Ordered to Pay More Than $730 Million in UK’s Largest Ever Divorce Settlement

A British judge ruled that a Dubai ruler must pay his ex-wife £554 million ($730 million) in one of the country’s largest divorce settlements.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum was ordered to pay his sixth wife, Princess Haya Bin Al Hussein, £251.5 million. He is also required to make ongoing payments for the former couple’s two children, Jalila, 14, and Zayed, 9, according to The Associated Press.

Additionally, Mohammed will be responsible for 11 million pounds a year to cover costs for Princess Haya and the children. In a November ruling, Judge Philip Moor said the family needed “water-tight security.” He called Mohammed the family’s “main threat.”

Mohammed and Haya have been separated since 2019 when he learned of her affair with her British bodyguard. She fled to the U.K. and tried to gain custody of her two children through British courts.

The ongoing custody battle has provided an unprecedented look into the notoriously private family’s vast wealth. Princess Haya was awarded £13.5 million for jewelry and £1 million for clothing. She was also given 5.1 million pounds for a holiday budget, 450,000 pounds for the children’s staff, 275,000 pounds for animals.