rebel my escape from saudi arabia to freedom rahaf mohammed

Yet even for the elite, life in Saudi Arabia held few advantages for Rahaf and her sisters. Furthermore, Rahaf’s mother, Lulu, was a science teacher who encouraged her four daughters to get educations.

Her father, Mohammed Mutlaq al Qunun, was a politician who interacted with the royal family, and as a member of the “elite,” his brood enjoyed “a lot of advantages,” like being able to travel outside the country. Her family lived in ultra-conservative Ha’il, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, in “a big nine-bedroom house” with a cook, a driver, a housekeeper and six family cars. Rahaf Mohammed al Qunun was born in 2000, the fifth of seven children. “But I also hope it prompts a change to the laws in Saudi, and that rather than being one girl’s story of escape, this book becomes a change agent at home.” Growing up, Rahaf couldn’t understand why men were allowed to wear comfortable clothing while women were subjected to an all-black hijab. “I hope my story encourages to be brave and find freedom,” she writes. It’s perhaps that attitude that has compelled Rahaf - who now goes by Rahaf Mohammed - to tell the story of her escape and her brutal life in Saudi Arabia, even if it means more death threats. “I shut down my social media account, dropped my family name, al Qunun, and went out to find a store where I could buy a parka that would keep me warm,” she writes with the utmost pragmatism. Rahaf Mohammed recounts her time growing up in a strict and abusive home in Saudi Arabia in her new memoir, “Rebel: My Escape from Saudi Arabia to Freedom.” Courtesy of Rahaf Mohammedīut, as the now 21-year-old writes in her new memoir, “ Rebel: My Escape from Saudi Arabia to Freedom” (Ecco) out now, she was undeterred.

12, 2019, to a crowd of cheering supporters throwing flowers and shouting “Welcome to Canada!” The next day, she woke up to hundreds of death threats on her phone. She arrived in Toronto a week later, on Jan. Social-media sympathizers helped connect her with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and Canada granted her asylum. News outlets from all over the world breathlessly followed her plight as she barricaded herself in her hotel and refused to eat. “Please help me,” Rahaf tweeted in desperation. But Saudi forces caught up with her at the Bangkok airport, where they seized her passport, threw her into a hotel room and told her they would be returning her to her abusive family in two days. The 18-year-old runaway had just fled her oppressive life in Saudi Arabia - absconding in the dead of night while on a family vacation. Three years ago, Rahaf Mohammed al Qunun took to Twitter, begging for her life. Saudi delegation in Iran after China-brokered deal Saudi Arabia’s futuristic new city could be surveillance state Lionel Messi, Paris Saint-Germain to part ways after falling out ‘Conspiracy Theory,’ Chuck, woke Navy’s recruitment woes and other commentary

Rebel my escape from saudi arabia to freedom rahaf mohammed