“DP World announced the appointment of His Excellency Essa Kazim as Chairman of its Board of Directors and the appointment of Yuvraj Narayan as Group Chief Executive Officer,” the group said in a statement published by the Dubai media office.

The statement did not mention Sulayem.

Described by Jeffrey Epstein as one of his “most trusted friends”, Sulayem was group chairman and chief executive officer of DP World, one of the largest port operators on the globe.

He is cited more than 9,400 times in the documents recently released by the US Department of Justice, which revealed close ties between the two men.

They maintained regular correspondence from 2009 to 2018, exchanging messages on intimate matters, meetings, introductions and business opportunities.

The wealthy Emirati businessman, was presented at the time by Epstein as close to Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.

The correspondence suggests he visited the US sex offender in his home several times, including on his island.

saa-aya/dcp