Noof Al Maadeed
Noof Al Maadeed | |
|---|---|
| نوف المعاضيد | |
| Born | 19 October 1998[1] |
| Occupation | Activist |
| Years active | 2019–2023 |
Noof Al Maadeed (Arabic: نوف المعاضيد; born 19 October 1998) is a Qatari women's rights activist. She gained international attention in 2019 after documenting her escape from Qatar on TikTok after allegedly experiencing years of domestic violence and restricted women's rights. She lived in the United Kingdom until October 2021 as an asylum seeker. That month, she returned to Qatar after reassurances from the government that she would be safe. Maadeed has not been seen or heard from since March 2023, as of September 2023.
Early life
Maadeed was born on 19 October 1998.[1]
Escape to United Kingdom
Maadeed fled to the United Kingdom from Qatar in 2019, following years of alleged domestic abuse from her family and restricted women's rights in the country. Qatar's law has restrictions on women under 25 flying abroad without a male guardian, and women must have permission from their male guardians to receive government jobs, scholarships for higher education, and certain kinds of healthcare.[2] In order to receive an exit permit to leave the country, Maadeed stole her father's phone and requested it herself via Metrash, a government application.[3][4] On 26 November 2019,[5] she left her house through her bedroom window and went to the airport, first flying to Ukraine, then arriving at the UK.[4]
A TikTok video she made documenting her journey went viral.[1] Following her arrival in the UK, Maadeed became a prominent Qatari women's rights activist, spreading awareness of gender discrimination in Qatar. She also gave several television interviews.[5] Maadeed used social media to give advice on immigration and asylum.[6]
Return to Qatar and disappearance
In October 2021, Al Maadeed voluntarily returned to Qatar from the United Kingdom after reassurance from Qatari authorities that she would be safe in the country. She stayed in a hotel, and had security presence. Her daily postings on Twitter and Instagram ceased on 13 October, prompting concern online, as Maadeed has previously warned her followers that silence on social media meant her safety was at risk. In tweets earlier that month, she claimed her father had visited the hotel, and that her life was in imminent danger.[3] In a response to The Guardian, a Qatari official claimed she was "safe and in good health".[3][7] The Gulf Centre for Human Rights claimed they had received tips that Maadeed had been given to her family's custody on 13 October.[3]
The Times claimed that a relative of Maadeed's stated she was committed to a psychiatric hospital against her will by her family. The relative also claimed she was heavily medicated and guarded at all times, though a Qatari official stated she was safe and in good health.[2] Human rights groups reported that Maadeed was feared to have been killed or forced to disappear following her return.[6]
In January 2022, Maadeed returned to Twitter on a new account and posted a video confirming that she was alive. She said she had lost the password for her previous account, which had 16,000 followers at the time.[8] She said she was living in Doha and was safe.[9] In March 2023, Maadeed posted several videos on her social media accounts, including Twitter, with the caption "The stupid one who returned to her homeland".[5] The videos allegedly showed human and civil rights violations in Qatar, and Maadeed was visibly in emotional distress. She claimed to be under a travel ban. As of September 2023, Maadeed has not been seen or heard of since.[5]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Oppenheim, Maya (21 October 2021). "'She is not free': Activist Noof al-Maadeed 'confined' by Qatari authorities". The Independent. Archived from the original on 11 September 2025. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ a b Swan, Melanie (17 December 2021). "Qatari feminist Noof al-Maadeed 'locked up in psychiatric hospital'". The Times. Archived from the original on 24 July 2024. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ a b c d Michaelson, Ruth (15 December 2021). "'If I'm not on social media, I'm dead': Qatari feminist activist feared killed or detained". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 4 April 2025. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ a b ""Everything I Have to Do is Tied to a Man"". Human Rights Watch. 29 March 2021. Archived from the original on 23 May 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
- ^ a b c d Ibrahim, Khalid (10 September 2023). "The story of Qatari women's rights defender Noof Al-Maadeed". Global Voices. Archived from the original on 8 July 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
- ^ a b "'Noof is alive': Qatari activist feared dead surfaces on Twitter after months of silence". Middle East Eye. 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 25 September 2025. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "مسؤول قطري: نوف المعاضيد في أمان وبصحة جيدة" [Qatari official: Noof Al-Maadeed is safe and in good health]. Al Jazeera Arabic (in Arabic). 16 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
- ^ "Qatari activist resurfaces on social media after speculation about her safety". France 24. 10 January 2022. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "ظهور جديد للناشطة القطرية نوف المعاضيد في "تطمينة": أنا حية ولم أمت" [Qatari activist Noof Al-Maadeed makes a new appearance on Twitter: 'I am alive and have not died']. CNN Arabic (in Arabic). 10 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 December 2025.