U.S. To Support Dubai Royal in Suit On Behalf of Camel Racers
WASHINGTON — A member of the Dubai royal family is getting the support of the United States Justice Department in his efforts to fight a lawsuit alleging that he encouraged the enslavement of boys for use as jockeys in camel races.
RABIH MOGHRABI/AFP/Getty
Under-age jockeys participate in a camel race in Dubai in February 2001.
On Friday the Justice Department filed a legal brief in U.S. District Court in Lexington, Ky., where the suit is being heard, asking that the suit be dismissed.
The suit is being prosecuted by the class action law firm Motley Rice LLC on behalf of thousands of former camel jockeys who were trafficked at a young age to the United Arab Emirates.
The defendant in the suit is Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid al-Maktoum, who is both the deputy ruler of Dubai and the economic minister of the UAE. He has denied the allegations.
The Justice Department's brief says dismissing the suit is "consistent with the foreign policy interests of the United States."
The brief also says federal courts do not have jurisdiction to "resolve disputes between foreign nationals that take place wholly outside the territory of the United States."
