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This is a picture of a 21-year-old woman in the 'cage' she claims she is being kept in by her father in Saudi Arabia.

Amina Al-Jeffery, who was taken to the Middle East four years ago, sent the picture to a friend in a plea for help, according to The Times.

The image appears to show Miss Al-Jeffery stood in front of a yellow, metal lattice, with a padlocked gate in the background.

The High Court was told she has been starved of food and water, physically abused, and will not be allowed to marry the man of her choice.

She was taken to Jeddah by her father, academic Mohammed Al-Jeffery, when she was 16 because he opposed her Swansea lifestyle.

Miss Al-Jeffery claims her father, 62, locks her in a cage because she was arrested for allegedly kissing and hugging an American student at a Saudi university.

Now 21, she has launched legal action against him.

She spoke to lawyer Anne-Marie Hutchinson when she briefly escaped her father’s home.

Lawyers outlined detail of her arrest at a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London on Thursday.

Miss Al-Jeffery, who grew up in Swansea and has dual British and Saudi Arabian nationality, says her father, academic Mohammed Al-Jeffery, locks her up at his flat.

Her lawyers have asked Mr Justice Holman to look at ways of coming to her aid.

The judge is scheduled to deliver a ruling on Wednesday and has described the case is “difficult and unusual”.

Mr Justice Holman described the case as very serious and said Mr Al-Jeffery, who is in his 60s, was not seeing the situation through the “right perspective”.

The judge said it was possible that Miss Al-Jeffery was being manipulative but there was a “degree of admission” from her father.

He said Mr Al-Jeffery had admitted locking his daughter in his flat when he went out.

Mr Al-Jeffery also admitted previously having “steel latticework” over the windows so Miss Al-Jeffery could not shout out.

“I provisionally feel that we - this state, this court - need to feel very concerned about the welfare of this British citizen,” the judge said.

“These things are said. There is a degree of admission by the father.

“To take an example, that he locks her in the flat when he goes out. That he formerly had this very elaborate steel latticework over the windows so that she could not shout out through the window.”

The judge said Mr Al-Jeffery was also refusing to let his daughter go to the British Consulate in Jeddah.

He added: “Provisionally there is a lot of ground for concern about her.”

The picture was sent to friend Robyn Lewis last November, The Times claimed.

Ms Lewis, who studied photography with Amina at Swansea’s Gowerton School, told the paper: “Amina sent me the message saying she didn’t want to be there. She said, you need to help me to get out of here.”

Along with the photograph, Miss Al-Jeffery reportedly wrote: “Just because I am dressed up, I am dressed up in a cage.”

Ms Lewis said her friend had asked her mother’s permission to stop wearing her headscarf because she liked her long, black curly hair.

“Amina is so intelligent and thoughtful,” estate agent Ms Lewis said.

“She taught me so much about Islam.

“Her father is portraying her as a rebel, she wasn’t.

“She did not drink alcohol. She had white British friends as well as Muslim friends, perhaps that is what upset her father.”

Ms Lewis thought her friend was going on a two week holiday to Morocco when she was taken to Saudi.

Representing Mr Al-Jeffery, Marcus Scott-Manderson said the father had “required” his daughter to go to Saudi Arabia when she was 16 because he was concerned about the life she led in Wales.

Mr Scott-Manderson told Mr Justice Holman that Mr Al-Jeffery did not want to attend the hearing.

“He doesn’t want to discuss Amina’s return,” said Mr Scott-Manderson.

“He wants to help Amina. He says he brought her to Saudi Arabia to help her. The father says Amina was at risk in Britain.

"The father says the British Government did nothing to help her. This is not a criticism of the British people but he says Amina is reckless and cannot help herself.”

The High Court’s family division has been asked to order Mr Al-Jeffery to return his daughter to Swansea.

The case continues.