Qatar Deports Alleged Rape Victim Back to Libya

Qatar has sent Iman al-Obeidy back to Libya kicking and screaming, despite objections from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Obeidy tells CNN that Qatari guards took her and her parents from their hotel in Doha; took their cell phones, laptops, and money; beat her and handcuffed her; and then forced her onto a plane bound for Benghazi early yesterday. A Libyan activist who met with Obeidy after her arrival says she had a black eye, bruised legs, and scratched arms.

Obeidy also says that there had been guards posted outside her room in Qatar to prevent UN officials from helping her. Qatar reportedly said that Obeidy’s visa expired, but the UNHCR says that shouldn’t have mattered, because she had refugee status. Obeidy says she believes the Transitional National Council—the Libyan rebel leadership—pressured Qatar to deport her. She has accused them of exploiting her story, and thinks they view it as an embarrassment that she fled the country. (More Iman al-Obeidi stories.)