The Death of a Saudi Princess by her cousin

The true story has been narrated by a cousin of Princess Misha’il. Please note – it may not be suitable to all.
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Misha'il was the granddaughter of Prince Mohammed ibn Abdul Aziz, the same Prince Mohammed who had been passed over for the crown because of his father's ruling that the ferocious behavior of a warrior had no place on a throne.

While I did not have a close friendship with Misha'il, I had met her at various royal functions. She was known in the family as a rather wild girl. I thought perhaps her unhappy temperament was related to her marriage to an old man who failed to satisfy her. Whatever it was, she was miserable and became romantically involved with Khalid Muhalhal, who happened to be the nephew of the special Saudi Arabian envoy to Lebanon.

Their love affair was hot and filled with the tension caused by the impossible social climate of Saudi Arabia. Many members of the royal family had heard of their illicit relationship, and when the young couple
were on the brink of discovery, they made a fatal decision to run off together.

My oldest sister, Nura, was in Jeddah at the time and heard the story firsthand from a member of Misha'il's immediate family. Misha'il, fearing the wrath of her family, attempted to stage her own death. She told her family that she was going for a swim at their private beach on the Red Sea. Misha'il piled her clothes on the shore, then dressed herself as a Saudi man and tried to flee the country.

Unfortunately for Misha'il, her grandfather, Prince Mohammed, was one of the shrewdest and most powerful men in the country. He did not believe she had drowned. Officials manning all exits from the country
were alerted to search for the granddaughter of Prince Mohammed. Misha'il was caught-intercepted trying to catch a flight from the airport in Jeddah.

Telephones were ringing all over the kingdom, with each royal professing to know more than the next. There was a rumor a minute. I heard that Misha'il had been set free and allowed to leave the kingdom with her lover. Then I was told a divorce would be granted. Later, a hysterical cousin called and claimed that Misha'il had been beheaded, and that it had taken three blows to separate her head from her body. Not only that, Misha'il's lips had moved and had called out her lover's name, causing the executioner to run from the scene! Can you imagine, my excited cousin asked, words from a bodiless head!

Finally, the very real and ugly truth was made known. Prince Mohammed, in a fit of anger, said that his granddaughter was an adulterer and that an adulterer should submit to Islamic law. Misha'il and her lover were going to be executed.

King Khalid, who was our ruler during this time of tragedy, was known for his indulgent nature. He recommended that Prince Mohammed show mercy, but mercy was not an agreeable emotion for that fierce bedoum.

On the day of the execution, I waited with my siblings for news. My sisters and I hoped or a last-minute reprieve. Ah, not surpnsingly, expressed the opinion that adulterous women should submit to the laws of Islam and prepare themselves for death.

On that hot day in July of 1977, my cousin Misha'il was blindfolded and forced to kneel before a pile of dirt. She was shot by a firing squad. Her lover was forced to watch her die. He was then beheaded with a sword.

Once again, unsanctioned love had cost two young people their lives.

The affair was hushed up, and the Al Sa'ud clan hoped that talk of a young woman murdered for the simple act of love would soon disappear. It was not to be. Though buried in the sands of the desert, Misha'il was not forgotten.

Many Westerners will recall the documentary about her death, called, appropriately, Death of a Princess. As divided as our family was over her punishment, nothing compared with the arguments and hostility generated by the film.

Having comfortably mastered the role of dictators, the men in our family grew furious over their inability to control the news releases and films shown in the West. Offended to the edge of madness, King Khalid
ordered the ambassador from Great Britain to leave our country and came close to kicking out all the British citizens from the kingdom.