[10] Sheikha Latifa escaped from Dubai in late February 2018 but was forcibly returned from international waters near the Indian coast by a joint India–Emirates operation on 4 March 2018.

[16][17] In August 2021 and after Latifa had been photographed in public places in Dubai, Spain and Iceland, the #FreeLatifa campaign, which had lasted three and a half years, came to an end.

[36] The following day, Sheikha Latifa, Jaubert and Jauhiainen, along with the crew of three Philippine nationals, were intercepted by Indian authorities while approaching Goa[37][38][39][40] on the U.S.-registered yacht Nostromo, call sign WDG9847.

[61][62] On 22 March 2018, Sheikha Latifa's companion Jauhiainen was found, prompting the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs to terminate its search in cooperation with the Dubai authorities.

[61][77][78] After sunset two unmarked speedboats carrying six to eight armed Indian MARCOS Special Forces personnel in full military gear and Tavor assault rifles were launched from these ships to intercept Nostromo.

[22][30] In the early days after the disappearance of the yacht Nostromo and its crew, the news was primarily carried on English and Finnish tabloids with awareness campaigns in social media.

[84] Jauhiainen and Jaubert made their first public appearance after the incident in a press conference arranged by Detained in Dubai in London[83][85] despite alleged threats from the UAE government to stay silent.

[92] Ad-Diyar, a mainstream Arab newspaper in Lebanon, published calls by Human Rights Watch raising the issue that Sheikha Latifa had been forcibly hidden.

[94] The UAE-controlled media[95] began reporting extensively about the social activities of her half-sister with the same name, who serves as Vice Chairman of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority.

[87] Many news outlets[96][97] reported show jumper[98] Sheikha Latifah bint Ahmed bin Juma Al Maktoum[99][100][101][102] as missing, due to similarity in names.

[51] On 2 January 2019, Minister of State for External Affairs V. K. Singh denied any involvement of Indian Government in repatriation of emirati princess while replying to a question raised by member of parliament Saugata Roy.

[107] According to ThePrint, extradition of Christian Michel from UAE to India on 19 November 2018[108] was a direct result of Indian involvement in forced return of Sheikha Latifa as a quid pro quo.

[111] A day later, the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Timo Soini, responded, saying Finland had been in correspondence with UAE and Indian officials about the issue outside of media.

[117] The matter was referred to the United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions by Guernica 37, a London-based law firm representing Latifa and her two friends.

[118] Chairman-rapporteur, Bernard Duhaime of the UN's working group on enforced or involuntary disappearances wrote to Dubai's royal family requesting evidence that Latifa was alive and the grounds on which she was being held captive or else they would have to make a public statement.

[119] In February 2021, a UN investigation determined that the princess was exchanged for British arms dealer Christian Michel, who was extradited from Dubai to Delhi to be tried for paying bribes.

Robinson described Latifa in a BBC Radio 4 interview[124] as a "troubled young woman" who regretted making the earlier video in which she alleged abuse, and was receiving psychiatric care.

[126][127] Human rights groups and associates of Sheikha Latifa questioned the nature of the brief visit, calling for independent investigation and assessment of her situation and disputing suggestions of any psychiatric problems and reiterating the possibility of her being held under captivity.

In April 2019, human rights lawyer and founder of Detained International David Haigh and Tiina Jauhiainen were able to covertly re-establish communication with her and began obtaining text and video messages from her.

[137][138] In February 2021, the footage obtained by David Haigh and Tiina Jauhiainen was used in Panorama, a BBC program that showed Latifa recounting how she had fought back against the soldiers taking her off the boat until she was tranquilized and carried onto a private jet which landed in Dubai.

[141] A spokesperson also said that the Emirates had in principle agreed to a meeting about Sheikha Latifa between senior United Nations officials and the Emirati ambassador in Geneva.

[131] On 28 April 2021, days before the Kentucky Derby in which Latifa's father Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum had a horse named Essential Quality who was considered a favorite to win, a group of human rights lawyers and students at the University of Louisville filed a complaint with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, asking for the Sheikh and Essential Quality to be barred from the Derby on the grounds of Sheikha Latifa's alleged situation.

In August 2021, after Latifa had been photographed in public places in Dubai, Spain and Iceland, the #FreeLatifa campaign, which had lasted three and a half years, came to an end.

[18] Human rights lawyer David Haigh, Latifa's cousin Marcus Essabri and Sioned Taylor, observing her wellbeing, described her situation as "the best position she has been in, in terms of freedom, for two decades".

"[18] In April 2023, an unverified account opened on Instagram under Latifa's name shared a statement, thanking people who showed interest in her well-being and claiming "I can understand it from the outside perspective of seeing someone so outspoken fall off the grid and have others speak on her behalf, especially after everything that has happened which appears to make me look like I'm being controlled.

[157] According to USA Today, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), "responding to an urgent plea from the powerful Dubai leader's office, provided assistance essential to [Latifa's] capture."