Princess Latifa
Princess Latifa attempted to escape from Dubai but was captured and returned to her father.
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  • A photo of Princess Latifa in a Dubai mall suggests that she is alive, Sky News reported.
  • This is the first sighting of her since the release of videos in which she claimed her family was holding her hostage.
  • Last month, a UN spokesperson had said that the UAE had failed to provide compelling proof that she was still alive.
  • Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

A photo of Princess Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum, the daughter of Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, appears to show that she is alive, according to Sky News.

This is the first sighting of the Dubai princess since videos were released by BBC Panorama of her claiming that she was being held hostage against her will in a "villa prison" under constant police surveillance, Insider's Julie Gerstein reported.

It would also be the first time that Princess Latifa has been seen in public since late 2018, The Guardian said.

There were concerns in the international community that Princess Latifa was dead, a claim her family has repeatedly refuted. In April, Marta Hurtado, a United Nations spokesperson, said that the United Arab Emirates had failed to provide compelling proof that she was still alive.

But the image, obtained by Sky News, appears to have been taken at the mall of the Emirates in Dubai at some time during the COVID-19 pandemic, the media outlet said.

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The photograph posted two days ago to Instagram includes face masks on the table. This suggests that the image was taken since the outbreak of the coronavirus, Sky News said.

David Haigh, the co-founder of the Free Latifa campaign and Detained International, told the media outlet: "We confirm that there have been several potentially significant and positive developments in the campaign.

"We do not intend to comment further at this stage. A further statement will be issued at the appropriate time".

Princess Latifa made headlines around the world when the BBC released secretly-recorded videos.

In 2018, the Emirati royal failed to escape Dubai after claiming that her father was the "most evil person" she'd ever met, Insider previously reported.

She was caught and sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison. The princess claimed in the February videos that she was being guarded by police officers, unable to leave her home, and was being held "hostage" by her family.

Read the original article on Insider