Noof Al Maadeed
{{non-free|date=May 2025}}
{{Short description|Qatari women's rights activist (1995–unknown)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Noof Al Maadeed
الحياة المادية
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1995}}
| birth_place = Doha, Qatar
| disappeared_date = {{Disappeared date|df=yes|2023|Mar|18|}}
| disappeared_status = {{Missing for|2023|Mar|18}}
|nationality = Qatari
| citizenship = Qatar
| other_names =
| known_for = Exposing lack of freedom for Qatari Women under existing guardian laws and disappearance after return to family
|
}}
Noof Al Maadeed ({{langx|ar|الحياة المادية}}, 1995 – disappeared March 2023) is a Qatari young woman who attracted international attention after her disappearance in 2021.
Escape to United Kingdom
At approximately 23 years old, Noof Al Maaded fled Qatar at the end of 2019, accusing her family of spending years abusing her, curtailing her movements and beating her.{{cite web | url= https://globalvoices.org/2023/09/10/the-story-of-qatari-womens-rights-defender-noof-al-maadeed/ | title= timeline of Noof's escape and return to Qatar | date= 10 Sep 2021 | accessdate = 9 Jan 2025 | publisher = Global Voices}} She asked for asylum in Britain, documenting her trip in a TikTok video. Upon arriving in the UK, she submitted an application for political asylum, citing domestic violence and the authorities’ failure to provide her with protection.
Women's rights activism
During her stay in the UK, Al-Maadeed was an advocate for Qatari women's rights, shedding light on the detrimental impact of male guardianship; currently, Qatar is the only remaining country in the Gulf region with a male guardianship law.{{cite book |chapter-url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2019/country-chapters/qatar |title=World Report 2019: Qatar – Human Rights Watch |chapter=Qatar: Events of 2018 |date=17 January 2019 |publisher=www.hrw.org |access-date=6 August 2019}} She explained how this system prevents women from working or travelling without a male guardian's consent and leaves women who are victims of domestic violence with little protection.
In various television interviews{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqaLnFkRKCc| title = Interview with AlHurra| date = 6 March 2020| publisher = Alhurra}} and other video recordings, she expressed the loss of safety she felt in Qatar because of the prevalence of domestic violence and the existence of discriminatory laws affecting women's employment and housing rights.{{cite web|url=https://www.gc4hr.org/the-story-of-qatari-womens-rights-defender-noof-al-maadeed/|title=Gulf Centre for Human Rights article on missing Qatari female |date=11 Sep 2023|accessdate=8 Jan 2025|publisher= GC4HR}}
Al-Maadeed underscored that unmarried women over the age of 18 cannot travel outside the country, secure a government job, or obtain a loan for independent housing without the approval of a male guardian. She also mentioned the fate of some young women who tried to assert their independence, as they were placed in mental institutions, prisons or safe shelters, which are similar to detention centres.
Return to Qatar and disappearance
Al-Maadeed withdrew her asylum request in the UK and left the country on September 30, 2021, with the intention of returning to Qatar. She explained that the Qatari authorities promised to provide her with the necessary protection and respect for her human rights upon her return.
However, upon her return to Qatar, she reported receiving threats to her life and sought protection from the local authorities. Soon after, she voiced her concerns publicly about the lack of help.
A particularly alarming concern about her fate arose from a video on Instagram, which has since been removed. In the video, dated October 12, 2021, she mentioned that she had been subjected to assassination attempts by her own family.
On the evening of October 13, 2021, Al-Maadeed stopped reporting on social media and was not heard from for almost three months. This triggered widespread concerns and alarming reports that she might have been detained incommunicado or even killed.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/noof-almaadeed-qatar-twitter-whereisnoof-b1942025.html|date= 21 Oct 2021 | accessdate=9 Jan 2025| work = The Independent| title = widespread concerns about safety}}{{cite news |date=15 Dec 2021 |title=missing social media activity raises concerns for safety |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/dec/15/if-im-not-on-social-media-im-dead-qatari-feminist-activist-feared-murdered-or-detained< |accessdate=9 Jan 2025 |work=The Guardian}}
International pressure, including efforts by human rights organisations such as the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), coupled with the imminent opening of the 2022 World Cup, compelled Qatari authorities to take measures to uncover Al-Maadeed's fate and protect her civil and human rights. On January 9, 2022, she posted a tweet containing a short video confirming that she was safe and in good health.{{cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/qatar/|title=US state department summary of human rights in Qatar|accessdate=8 Jan 2025}}
On March 18, 2023, Al-Maadeed released a series of videos on various social media networks, including her X (formerly Twitter) account, captioned with the following phrase, “The stupid one who returned to her homeland.” These video recordings provide substantial evidence of the widespread violations of her civil and human rights at the hands of the authorities, led by the notorious state security apparatus. This entity is known for its work outside the legal framework and its use of the Qatari judiciary as a tool to target innocent citizens.{{cite web |url=https://www.icsrf-gcc.org/index.php/arab/qatar/2125 | title = Article on the implications of the disappearance for statehood| date= 1 Jul 2024 | accessdate= 8 Jan 2025 | publisher= ICSRF}}
In these recordings, Al-Maadeed appears visibly frail and emotionally distressed with tears in her eyes. There have been no further updates from Al-Maadeed.