Meriam bint Abdullah Al-Khalifa is a member of the Bahraini Royal House of Al-Khalifa. Meriam is notorious for fleeing her family and homeland of Bahrain for the United States. She eloped with US Marine Lance Corporal Jason Johnson, who at the time was stationed in Bahrain as part of a counterterrorism squad safeguarding Americans living abroad.
Meriam was granted refuge after US Customs threatened to deport her and Lance Corporal Johnson assisted her in illegally entering the United States. She stated that she feared honor-based violence from her family because she had left her home country and been dating a non-Muslim.
Where Is Meriam Al-Khalifa now?
The celebrity couple filed for divorce on November 17, 2004 (one day after their fifth wedding anniversary), citing “incompatibility in marriage.” Meriam’s husband, Johnson, had become estranged from her when she immersed herself in the Las Vegas nightlife. Since 2001, the pair had considered divorce, and Jason stated that Meriam desired it.
Johnson stated, “Deep down inside, she understands that I loved her more than anything else in the world.” I can honestly say that I enjoyed every moment I spent with her. In 2005, Johnson appeared on an episode of Divorce Court without Meriam to argue his case.
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Who is Meriam Al-Khalifa?
Meriam bint Abdullah Al-Khalifa is a member of the Bahraini Royal House of Al-Khalifa. Meriam is notorious for fleeing her family and homeland of Bahrain for the United States. She eloped with US Marine Lance Corporal Jason Johnson, who at the time was stationed in Bahrain as part of a counterterrorism squad safeguarding Americans living abroad.
Meriam was granted refuge after US Customs threatened to deport her and Lance Corporal Johnson assisted her in illegally entering the United States. She stated that she feared honor-based violence from her family because she had left her home country and been dating a non-Muslim.
The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service issued Meriam Al-Khalifa a “Green Card” in May 2001, and she was permitted to communicate with her family in Bahrain once more.
Meriam returned to Bahrain to visit her family at the end of 2001, despite having stated in prior interviews that she feared being killed or injured in her native country. Meriam stated that she and her family were especially concerned about “violence towards people of Middle Eastern heritage” after the September 11 terrorist attacks.
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Unhappy End 0f Modern Fairytale
The five-year marriage between a former Marine and a young Bahraini queen, whose story inspired a made-for-television film in the United States and outrage in her native nation, has ended.
Jason Johnson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the divorce he and Meriam Al-Khalifa filed for on November 17, the day after their fifth wedding anniversary, was “what she wanted.” It labels them “marriage incompatible.”
Johnson, who smuggled his girlfriend into the United States and was court-martialed for the relationship, portrayed the situation as a “Romeo and Juliet” romance that ended amid the Las Vegas nightlife, opposition from his wife’s family, and at least one death threat.
In the divorce petition, Al-Khalifa was unrepresented by counsel. Monday, no one opened the door to her residence, and it was unclear whether she intended to remain in the United States.
In January 1999, Johnson was stationed in Bahrain, an island monarchy located off the coast of Saudi Arabia. Al-Khalifa is one of the five daughters of Sheik Abdullah bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, a distant relative of Sheik Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, the monarch of Bahrain.
They fell in love despite the fact that he was a Mormon and she was a Muslim who was forbidden to marry a non-Muslim. Her family demanded an end to the relationship. They continued to exchange letters in secret through a mall employee.
When his term of duty concluded in November 1999, Johnson smuggled Al-Khalifa into the United States using false documents and a disguise that included a New York Yankees baseball cap.
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Johnson was court-martialed, demoted, and discharged from the Marines for his role. Al-Khalifa requested asylum in the United States on political grounds. The wedding took place in Las Vegas on November 16, 1999. He was 23. She was 19 years old.