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Ex-wife's revenge on Saudi King
The Times ^ | June 14, 2005 | Helen Nugent

Posted on 06/13/2005 10:37:58 PM PDT by MadIvan

FEW have penetrated the closed world of Saudi Arabia’s ruling family, with its enormous wealth, the lavish lifestyles of its princes and their private passions. Those who do know the truth about King Fahd and his family — the wives, mistresses and advisers — are usually well rewarded to hold their tongues.

But a ruling by a senior High Court judge has opened the door to the House of Saud and will allow a rare glimpse inside. Later this year at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, the bitter dispute between King Fahd, 82, and one of his wives, will be aired in public.

It will be an unprecedented hearing, keenly awaited by observers of the kingdom and its absolute rulers. The woman who threatens to expose the ruling family’s inner workings is Janan George Harb, 57.

Mrs Harb, who under Islamic tradition kept her own name after her marriage, is suing the King for increased maintenance from his £32 billion fortune. She says she needs the money to maintain a suitable lifestyle at her Knightsbridge home. She has lived in London for much of the past 30 years and is now a British citizen.

Mrs Harb has pursued her claim despite attempts by the king’s lawyers to keep the case out of the public eye. Previous High Court hearings were cloaked in secrecy and were listed simply as Maple v Maple.

Mrs Harb’s claim is believed to be the first of its kind for a family which regards those who challenge its secrecy as traitors and outcasts. “I don’t know of a single case where anyone has sued the Royal Family for maintenance, I don’t think it has ever happened,” said Said Aburish, an expert on the Fahd family.

In March 2001 the King’s lawyers agreed to pay Mrs Harb “a very substantial sum” on condition that she entered into a binding agreement to reveal nothing of their relationship. Precise details of the maintenance settlement and Mrs Harb’s demands for more money remain unclear but wives of the Saudi royals are known to lead opulent lifestyles.

King Fahd is said to have seven palaces in Saudi Arabia, a chateau on the French Riviera, a private Boeing 747 and two liner-sized yachts.

Under Islamic law, men may take four wives. King Fahd’s father is understood to have had 145 wives during his lifetime and dozens of children. His son has been married fewer times but the frequency of Saudi royal marriages makes it difficult to estimate his total number of wives and ex-wives.

Mr Aburish said: “There are probably only three or four people in the world who know how many times King Fahd has been married.” According to a leading Arabic academic, who did not wish to be named, the wives usually each take a private residence in Saudi Arabia and are habitual travellers.

The family has mansions all over the world and a wife visiting different homes travels with her own entourage, including security guards. Mrs Harb is understood to have been shunned by the household over her Palestinian origins and Christian beliefs.

At previous hearings the King had successfully argued that as a head of state he had sovereign immunity. Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, then President of the Family Division, upheld his argument in December last year. But Lord Justice Thorpe has ruled that Mrs Harb’s claim must be held in open court.

The judge said: “I see no legitimate ground for imposing reporting restrictions that would thinly disguise the identity of the sovereign. The identity of the sovereign seems to me to be relevant to any public debate of the issues raised by the plea of immunity.”

KING FAHD FACTS



TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: cary; exwife; fahd; saudi
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I'm not sure I want to look inside the House of Saud.

Regards, Ivan


1 posted on 06/13/2005 10:37:58 PM PDT by MadIvan
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To: Deetes; Barset; fanfan; LadyofShalott; Tolik; mtngrl@vrwc; pax_et_bonum; Alkhin; agrace; ...

Ping!


2 posted on 06/13/2005 10:38:20 PM PDT by MadIvan (You underestimate the power of the Dark Side - http://www.sithorder.com/)
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To: MadIvan
Were it not for oil, these people would still be squatting beside the camel trail to relieve themselves.
3 posted on 06/13/2005 10:44:28 PM PDT by ncountylee
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To: MadIvan
Under Islamic law, men may take four wives.

Sheesh. Just one wife is gonna be the death of me.

4 posted on 06/13/2005 10:47:52 PM PDT by martin_fierro (< |:)~)
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To: martin_fierro; MadIvan
Muslims do not have wives in the western sense. In their culture, women are chatel and have a status slightly above that of a dog. They are property in the same sense that a slave is property. Among the muslim royal houses in the middle east women are used as tokens to establish aliances among tribes and clans.



5 posted on 06/13/2005 11:13:23 PM PDT by Cacique (quos Deus vult perdere, prius dementat ( Islamia Delenda Est ))
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To: MadIvan
I've never used the term "Saudi" Arabia, just Arabia - why justify putting a bandit chief's family in charge by using their name when referring to the country?
6 posted on 06/13/2005 11:17:28 PM PDT by decal (Where were YOU when AndyScam broke? Sluthering, perhaps?)
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To: MadIvan
So, is he dead? Not dead? I can't keep track.
7 posted on 06/13/2005 11:17:36 PM PDT by Tony in Hawaii (Lookin' for the joke with a microscope)
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To: MadIvan

The Abdul Aziz

The largest yacht ever built at a staggering 482 feet, the Abdul Aziz is the personal yacht of the Saudi King Fahd. In 1984 it cost $109 million to build.

For security reasons, information about the yacht's amenities is scarce, but we do know that the Abdul Aziz features 60 guest rooms, two swimming pools, a hospital, an intensive care unit, a gym, a sauna, hand-carved marble baths and—for security reasons—Stinger surface-to-air anti-aircraft missiles.

The yacht is docked in Antibes, in the basin of Grand Plaisance, and she's easy to spot: Just look for the boat with the helicopter parked on her bow.

8 posted on 06/13/2005 11:36:38 PM PDT by Daaave (More human, than human®.)
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To: Cacique

With all the multiple wives and children through the years the whole damn country must be related.


9 posted on 06/13/2005 11:42:57 PM PDT by Mind-numbed Robot (Not all that needs to be done needs to be done by the government.)
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To: Cacique
Muslims do not have wives in the western sense. In their culture, women are chatel and have a status slightly above that of a dog.

And the West does not have husbands in the classical sense, the wife can leave the husband at anytime and take with the kids, the house, all the property, bank accounts and make the husband a financial slave, through child-support and alimony, for the rest of the ex-husband's life.

And no, I am NOT being sarcastic.

10 posted on 06/13/2005 11:44:33 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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To: MadIvan
I was going to say with his fortune he can well afford to throw her a few quid, with a gagging order.

But then 145 wives equals quite a sizeable chunk of change in alimony. Perhaps he shouldn't have, erm, pitched a tent under his kaftan quite so frequently! ;-)

11 posted on 06/14/2005 1:22:28 AM PDT by Happygal (liberalism - a narrow tribal outlook largely founded on class prejudice)
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To: MadIvan

Her last name is Harb? I thought "Harb" in Arabic meant "war," as in dar al-harb, "the abode of war."


12 posted on 06/14/2005 1:34:04 AM PDT by Otho
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To: Paul C. Jesup

For some reason, what the feminist have accomplished here in this country, is evil, immoral and goes contrary to the will of God and the Bible.


13 posted on 06/14/2005 1:57:50 AM PDT by Prophet in the wilderness (PSALM 53 : 1 The ( FOOL ) hath said in his heart , There is no GOD .)
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To: MadIvan

Didn't King Fahd die recently?


14 posted on 06/14/2005 4:01:17 AM PDT by Conservative Infidel (How come they call it "Tourist Season" if we can't shoot them??)
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To: MadIvan
According to a leading Arabic academic, who did not wish to be named, the wives usually each take a private residence in Saudi Arabia and are habitual travellers.

Things that make you go hmmmm.....

15 posted on 06/14/2005 4:02:28 AM PDT by Desdemona (Music Librarian and provider of cucumber sandwiches, TTGC Ladies' Auxiliary. Hats required.)
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To: Otho

I noticed that too.


16 posted on 06/14/2005 4:09:11 AM PDT by sauropod (De gustibus non est disputandum)
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To: MadIvan

No offense to anyone, but this woman seems to be a gold digger.

From what I got in the article, she had already received a large sum of money to keep her mouth quiet.

Also, there seemed to have been some indication that she holds "Christian" beliefs. Really? Then why did she marry a Muslim?

Okay............


17 posted on 06/14/2005 4:16:28 AM PDT by Preachin' (Georgia finally saw the light in 2000.)
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To: Mind-numbed Robot

I've always said inbreeding is what makes them all so crazy.


18 posted on 06/14/2005 4:39:21 AM PDT by pepperdog
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To: Happygal

This dude doesn't have to go to Heaven to get his 72 virgins.


19 posted on 06/14/2005 4:41:39 AM PDT by norge
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To: martin_fierro
Sheesh. Just one wife is gonna be the death of me.

An Air Force comrde of mine was flying supplies into Somalia when the plane had an in flight emergency and they diverted to Egypt. Stuck there for a few days, he went to see the sights. While on a tour to Giza, he began discussing Islam with the tour guide, because he had never met a Muslim before. He asked the guy how ,many wives he had, and the guy says, "One wife! One wife! Any man has more than one wife is CRAZY MAN!"

20 posted on 06/14/2005 6:06:35 AM PDT by Mr. Silverback ("Eureka! I just found the gene that causes people to believe in genetic determinism!")
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