A sister of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia went on trial Tuesday in a French court over the alleged beating of a workman who was carrying out repairs in her ultra-luxury Paris apartment. Hassa bint Salman is a daughter of King Salman and a sister of powerful crown prince Mohammed bin Salman who is known by his initial "MBS" and is seen by many analysts as the de-facto leader of the kingdom. She stands accused of ordering her bodyguard Rani Saidi, who is also charged, to beat up the workman Ashraf Eid after he was seen taking a photo inside her home in September 2016.
Eid, who worked in the luxury apartment block, had been called in to repair a damaged basin and told investigators he needed the pictures taken with his phone to carry out the work. The princess, who denies the allegations and was not present in court, allegedly suspected Eid of planning to sell the photo of her apartment on the Avenue Foch, long a favourite destination for foreign millionaires in western Paris. Eid, who was also not present in court, has said he was tied up and ordered to kiss the feet of the princess, who is thought to be in her 40s and is lionised in the Saudi state-run media for charity work and women's rights campaigning.
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