The elder brother of Prince AlWaleed bin Talal slammed the famous Saudi billionaire over the repeated appearance of his wife in the media and warned him of a “severe” response if he does not stop her.

In a surprise statement carried by the so-called Logainat website, Prince Khalid bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz said he had advised his younger brother to stop such practices which “violate our family, religion and Saudi values.”

“What my brother is doing is a deliberate and stubborn act without giving any consideration to the feelings of his family…man’s honour is very dear and harming this honour is very bad and unfair,” he said.

“I have told him that our family honour is a red line and if you don’t respect this honour, then we do because it is dearer than all jewellery…I now tell you that if you do not come back to your senses and stop your deviation, then our response will be very severe and harsh next time without prior warning.”

Prince Khaled was referring to repeated TV appearances and Western newspaper statements by AlWaleed’s wife Princess Ameera Al Taweel.

In recent comments in the US Newsweek magazine, Princess Amira criticised curbs on Saudi women and said women want equal rights as men in the conservative Gulf Kingdom, the world’s oil basin.

Born in 1983, the Princess is Vice-Chairwoman of the Board of Trustees and Head of the Executive Committee of the Alwaleed bin Talal Foundations.

Princess Ameerah, the only wife of Prince Alwaleed, travels extensively on behalf of the Alwaleed bin Talal Foundations in an effort to better understand the most pressing challenges facing our world.

She has spoken out publicly in the US on NBC’s Today, CNN International and NPR, as well as in Time magazine and Foreign Policy Magazine in support of both women’s right to drive in her country and the broader issue of women’s overall empowerment to contribute fully in the Saudi society.

Noted for her forward thinking, she has been featured in Newsweek, The Daily Beast, Huffington Post and was recently interviewed by Piers Morgan, one of the best known British TV presenters and journalists.

She spoke in a special session at the 2011 Clinton Global Initiative, entitled, Voices for Change in the Middle East & North Africa, in which she discussed her views on the current movements for change in the region with Clinton.