Court awards US model $68 million from Saudi ex-husband

LONDON – A British court has awarded an American model 53 million pounds ($68 million) in a divorce settlement with a wealthy Saudi businessman.

Sheikh Walid Juffali divorced Christina Estrada under Islamic law in 2014. She went to court in Britain seeking 196 million pounds to meet her “reasonable needs” — including 1 million pounds a year for clothes.

A judge gave her a lesser sum, but her lawyers say it is still by far “the largest needs award ever made by an English court.”

Estrada, 54, who lives in Britain, says she appreciates that “the spectacular life Walid and I led was immensely fortunate and rarefied.”

Her 61-year-old ex-husband, who has terminal cancer, told the court that his wealth amounts to 113.8 million pounds, not the billions estimated by Estrada’s lawyers.

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