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Humza Yousaf sensationally resigned today, capping an extraordinary crisis caused by the dismissal of his Green coalition partners, and paid an emotional tribute to his family and his “wonderful wife”.
The Scottish First Minister tearfully announced he had resigned after failing to win enough support to survive a vote of confidence in a shocking fall from grace for Yousaf, 39, who replaced Nicola Sturgeon just a year ago.
After he summarily abandoned the Greens from the Bute House coalition deal (and publicly humiliated them by making them take a walk of shame in front of the cameras), they pledged to back a no-confidence motion tabled by the Conservatives.
Watched by his wife Nadia in Edinburgh, Yousaf admitted he had “underestimated” the backlash to abandoning the Bute House deal, adding: “I’m not prepared to change my values… simply to retain power.”
Humza Yousaf resigned today in sensational fashion, culminating an extraordinary crisis caused by the dismissal of his Green coalition partners.
He added: ‘Politics can be a brutal business. This takes a toll on your physical and mental health: your family suffers alongside you.
‘I am absolutely indebted to my wonderful wife, my beautiful children and my family in general for putting up with me over the years. I’m afraid you’ll be seeing a lot more of me from now on. You really are everything to me.’
As Mr Yousaf’s wife supports her husband following his sudden resignation, FEMAIL takes a look at the woman who has supported the former Scottish First Minister throughout his campaign, as well as the children they have raised.
Who is Nadia El-Nakla?
Humza Yousaf with his wife Nadia El-Nakla as he arrives to be sworn in as First Minister of Scotland at the High Court of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Humza (pictured with his wife and daughter) narrowly won the bitter five-week battle to succeed Nicola Sturgeon on March 27, 2023.
Mrs El-Nakla, 39, to a Palestinian father, was born in Scotland. She married Yousaf in 2019 and the couple live in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee.
They have a three-year-old daughter, Amal. Mrs El-Nakla also has a daughter from a previous marriage.
In May 2022, the trained psychotherapist became an SNP councilor for Dundee’s West End.
After winning the council seat, he said, via The National: ‘I really want to take advantage of this moment over the next five years to invest in women and bring them into politics because in the Broughty Ferry ward I don’t think we’ve ever seen a female councilor in I don’t know how long. .’
She worked for Scottish Government Minister Shona Robison and stood as an SNP candidate in North East Scotland in the 2021 Holyrood election. However, she was unsuccessful.
The mother of two does not have a large social media presence, however, she frequently appears on her husband’s Instagram account.
Showing their fun side, the couple also joined their daughters in a fun TikTok video to launch Mr. Yousaf’s profile.
Sharing it on Twitter in December 2020, he wrote: “So, after telling me not to ruin TikTok for her, my stepdaughter decided to direct our first piece of content.
‘A little fun and don’t worry, there won’t be any daddy dancing…!’ he concluded about the clip, which showed the family deciding between different options as they were presented throughout the video.
Why else has Mrs El-Nakla been in the news?
Details of the breakdown of El-Nakla’s marriage to IT expert Fariad Umar were reportedly made public in a court case in 2018.
She confessed to having an affair with a fellow SNP member who was accused of sending her racist text messages, according to the Scottish daily express.
Meanwhile, in 2021, Yousaf and his second wife filed a legal complaint against a daycare center, accusing it of racial discrimination after their daughter was denied admission.
Humza and Nadia share a three-year-old daughter, Amal. Mrs. El-Nakla also has a daughter, Maya, from a previous marriage.
The couple regularly show off their fun side on TikTok alongside their daughters to help launch Mr Yousaf’s profile.
Humza Yousaf with his wife Nadia El-Nakla, daughter Amal and stepdaughter (left) at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on March 27, 2023.
Mrs El-Nakla (pictured with Mr Yousaf, left), 39, to a Palestinian father, was born in Scotland. She married Yousaf in 2019 and the couple live in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee.
After being told there was no space for the couple’s daughter at Little Scholars in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee, Ms El-Nakla and a friend submitted bogus applications for children with “white-sounding names”.
Although a watchdog ordered the daycare to change its procedures, El-Nakla dropped his legal action against it. The daycare denied the allegations.
In August 2021, in a statement issued through their lawyer, the couple said: ‘Despite having been given ample opportunities, Little Scholars Day Nursery in Broughty Ferry has failed to admit, explain or apologize for its discriminatory behaviour. .
‘We have both stood against hate our entire lives and have often been subjected to vile abuse. We will not accept that our children are discriminated against by anyone.
‘Like any other parent, we simply want our children to be treated equally, regardless of their skin color or religion.
In May 2022, the trained psychotherapist (pictured with her family) became an SNP councilor for Dundee’s West End.
The mother of two does not have a large social media presence, however, she frequently appears on her husband’s Instagram account (pictured).
Showing their fun side, the couple also joined their daughters in a fun TikTok video to launch Mr. Yousaf’s profile.
Humza Yousaf hugs his wife Nadia El-Nakla and daughter Amal at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on March 27, 2023.
‘We firmly believe we have evidence that Little Scholars Day Nursery is engaging in systemic discrimination.
“As passionate believers in the fairness of Scotland’s justice system, we have now instructed our solicitor Aamer Anwar to commence court proceedings and we are determined to fight for justice for our daughter.”
A spokesperson for the nursery told the Daily Record at the time: “Our nursery is extremely proud to be open and inclusive to all and any claim to the contrary is demonstrably false and an allegation we would refute in the strongest possible terms.”
The spokesperson added: “As well as our owners being of Asian descent, over more than a decade we have regularly welcomed children and staff from different religious, cultural, ethnic and racial backgrounds, including currently two Muslim families.”
“We have also periodically made arrangements to accommodate different lifestyles, for example offering a halal menu for children who come from Muslim families.”
