UAE activist Alaa Al-Siddiq dies in a car crash
Alaa Al-Siddiq, a prominent Emirati rights activist and critic, dies in a car crash in London.
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Activist Alaa Al-Siddiq dies in a London car crash
Alaa Al-Siddiq, a prominent Emirati rights activist and critic, has died in a car crash in London.
Al-Siddiq was the executive director of the United Kingdom-based ALQST, a non-profit organization that advocates for human rights in the UAE and the wider Gulf region.
“With deep sadness, ALQST mourns the sudden death of its loved and respected Executive Director Alaa Al-Siddiq on Saturday 19 June 2021,” the organization mourned in a tweet. “May she rest in power.”
Shocked and devastated to learn the news of Alaa departing this world in a traffic accident in London.
— Marwa Fatafta مروة فطافطة #SaveSheikhJarrah (@marwasf) June 20, 2021
Last time we spoke, she wanted to send me a wedding gift and I was so touched by her generosity. May your kind, brave, & generous soul rest in peace my friend. pic.twitter.com/WiV8A1q8af
اليوم رحلت عن هذه الدنيا الباحثة الإماراتية القديرة والأخت الصادقة المدافعة عن العدالة الأستاذة #آلاء_الصديق @alaa_q بينما يقبع والدها محمد الصديق في سجون الإمارات سيئة السمعة.
— د. عبدالله العودة (@aalodah) June 20, 2021
أسأل الله أن يتقبلها في الصالحين وأن يرزق أهلها وذويها ومحبيها الصبر والسلوان، وأن يفرّج عن والدها pic.twitter.com/yAdrscdkq8
“Today, the able Emirati researcher and honest sister, professor Alaa al-Siddiq, left this world, while her father, Mohammad al-Siddiq languishes in the notorious prisons of the [United Arab] Emirates,” wrote Saudi activist Abdullah al-Awda.
My friend and brave Human Rights Defender @alaa_q passed away after spending years defending her father unjustly imprisoned in the UAE. She fought, almost alone, a dictatorship who tried to tarnish her image her whole life.
— Lina Alhathloul لينا الهذلول (@LinaAlhathloul) June 20, 2021
Rest in peace, we’ll miss you forever ❤️ https://t.co/zDfjpVwD7w
Al-Siddiq was known for her strong stances in rejecting the normalization deal signed between the UAE and the occupation state of "Israel".
“The normalization process with the occupation state of "Israel" is a betrayal; committed by whomever,” Al-Siddiq said.
Alaa's family has a history with activism, as her father, Mohammad al-Siddiq, is also a prominent activist who has been detained by Emirati authorities since 2013.
According to Doha News, Alaa and her husband sought asylum in Qatar in 2012, where they lived with their relatives.
A rift between Qatar and Doha was caused by the activist's presence in Qatar.
In 2018, Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said there was a dispute between Qatar and the UAE in 2015 concerning a political dissident’s wife.
Abu Dhabi had sent an envoy to Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to ask that the woman in question be handed over to Emirati authorities, a request that was turned down by the Qatari ruler.
Abdullah al-Athbah, the editor in chief of Qatar’s al-Arab newspaper, later revealed that it was Alaa who the Emiratis sought to repatriate.
