What do you think of when you see the word 'bodyguard'?
A hench man standing at a lofty 7ft tall?
An former pro-wrestler dressed in a black suit with intimidatingly large biceps?
A hard-nosed Kevin Costner-type hero?
Well, think again, because the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker-Bowles, is focussed on championing female body guards, after she recently hired a team of female security personnel to take care of her during her three-day visit to the United Arab Emirates.
During her visit to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain with her husband the Prince of Wales last week, Camilla was spotted walking around with a security detail made up of five women – Shaima al Kaabi, Basima al Kaabi, Nisreen al Hamawi, Salama al Remeithi, and Hannan al Hatawi – who form part of the 50 members of the UAE's presidential guard.
Trained in martial arts, these women are reportedly armed with weapons, hidden underneath their black hijabs and abayas in the case of an attack on their VIP Camilla, who was incidentally on a royal visit to the UAE to promote religious tolerance and women in leadership.
In an interview with The Daily Mail, the Duchess expressed her sincere thanks to her team of guards to say: 'It is quite extraordinary to have them.'
'I have never had four women looking after me [and] they are the most incredible women. The first one had climbed Everest. I said, 'How long did it take?' and she said 16 days! It's quite remarkable,' she added.
Er, you can say that again, Camilla.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
